Located alongside the bustling fabric souk in the Bur Dubai area, the XVA Gallery is one of the most stylish and peaceful places in this otherwise hectic city. Based in an old-style Arabic building, the gallery, café and guest house that comprises XVA is situated around two light and airy courtyards that provide the gallery with an intimate atmosphere. Tiny gallery spaces off the central courtyards display paintings, photographs, drawings and small sculptures from artists in the region. The XVA is an intelligent and understated contrast to the overblown excess and ostentation that often characterises many such endeavours in this region.
The XVA was founded in 2003 by Mona Hauser as an independent gallery dedicated to showing works from artists from the Middle East, and as a meeting place and forum for artists and those with an interest in arts and culture in the region. In addition to the gallery space, the XVA features a gift shop, an excellent café and eight guest rooms. The gallery crosses between different mediums, featuring exhibitions of paintings, graphic art, sculpture, drawings, photography, motion pictures and decorative arts.
I met with one of the joint managing directors of the XVA Gallery, Mitra Khoubrou, in one of the cool office spaces off the main courtyard where we discussed the independent art scene in Dubai over a frozen mint lemonade – one of the specialties of the gallery café.
How would you describe the curatorial policies of the gallery? How do you select your artists?
The selection of our artists come from different sources. They sometimes are recommended by other artists the galley already works with. We also receive a lot of emails and visits of young regional artists who are looking for a platform to exhibit their works. We have just discovered a very talented Lebanese artist, Laudi Abilama who sent us an email and who happened to be in Dubai the day we answered her. Dubai is more and more considered as a cultural hub for artists from the region and we receive an important number of requests from artists. Some of the artists we exhibit are also the results of research and travels in the region.
What is the background of the management of XVA?
Mona Hauser is the owner of the gallery. Mona opened XVA in 2003 to fill a void in Dubai. She envisioned XVA as a universe that matched her own mindset; a place where people could come and spend the day, even sleep over. Inspired by the tradition of the old salons, she set out to create a Forum for artists in Dubai. Daniel Camara and Mitra Khoubrou recently left the corporate world to join XVA and Mona as Managing Directors.
XVA is well known in Dubai as both a gallery and a cafe and boutique hotel, how do you find that the three business work together? Do you think that it would be possible to run the gallery as a standalone business?
The combination of the 4 activities of XVA (hotel, café, store, gallery) is a result of Mona’s vision to create a meeting point for the cultural community of Dubai. It’s also a result of our unique location in Bastakiya, the only historical urban area in Dubai. Our vision to make XVA an art center justifies the mix of these businesses. In addition to our exhibitions we also run a film forum, movie nights, talks and other type of activities. It is definitely possible to run the gallery as a standalone business but we are more interested in creating a new type of cultural concept for Dubai: a gallery, an art center, a meeting point, a place for tourists, locals and expats.
There is an enormous amount of wealth in Dubai and the region how do you find that impacts on the gallery businesses?
This has a very good impact on the gallery businesses. We have recently witnessed more interest from the private sector in arts and cultural initiatives and acquisitions. This is of course linked to the growth of Dubai and the UAE in general. Along with the positioning of Dubai as a trade and business hub came the positioning as a cultural/art hub.
The times that I have visited the gallery I noticed that there were fairly regular tour groups visiting the gallery – how do you find tourists respond to the XVA?
A lot of surprise and satisfaction. I think foreigners are happy to see that Dubai is not only about skyscrapers, malls and beautiful beaches. They are impressed by Bastakiya’s unique architecture, by the feeling of authenticity and the historical nature of this place. They are also happy to discover one of the few pedestrian areas of the Emirate. They are also surprised to see that a gallery of contemporary art is located in this historical part of town. The comments and discussions we have had with our guests and visitors are extremely positive.
With the development of the economy in Dubai and the massive projects planned for Abu Dahbi do you think that the UAE is on the way to becoming a regional centre for the arts?
Definitely. The establishment of institutions such as Christies, Sotheby’s, le Louvre, Guggenheim is definitely a sign of this ambition. H.H. Sheikh Mohammed’s Strategic Plan 2015 also gives culture an important role in the overall growth of the Emirate.
What do you feel is necessary for the further development of the industry here and is there anything missing?
Probably more collaboration between galleries and art institutions. Also a better coordination on the various cultural projects that are being launched in Dubai. Both the corporate sector and the government have been extremely supportive of cultural activities in Dubai and it’s now time for art institutions to deliver high-quality programs for the resident of the Emirate.
