Summer Fun with Qatar Museums
Summer is here, the weather is warmer and schools are out. Although this sunny season may feel a bit different, there is still a lot to do. Here at Qatar Museums, we are offering a wide array of online activities for the whole family.
Educational Fun for Children
Both the National Museum of Qatar (NMoQ) and the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) are offering a wide array of activities for kids, ages three to 12. At NMoQ, parents can sign their children up for interactive learning activities that explore the history of dhows and pearl divers in Qatar. They can also be enrolled in a colouring and writing programme centred around panoramic images from the museum’s galleries.
MIA has a slate of workshops and programmes planned as well. Kids can explore alphabets and animals in Islamic art or learn how to decipher fake news, answering the question: who do you trust in a museum to give you the right information? Other sessions include learning to fashion an 8th-century clay jar or creating their own monoprint design.
For those who want longer programmes for their kids and teens, MIA is also offering three summer camps. Six to 12 year-olds can spend a few days learning about Islamic art or, for the bookworms at heart, there is a summer reading and writing camp where kids can discover a whole new world of authors, such as Ferdowsi, an Iranian poet famed for writing one of the greatest books ever — the Shahnameh. Participants will explore other epic poems from different cultures.
For more details about NMoQ programmes, contact programsnmoq@qm.org.qa.
For more details about MIA’s programmes, contact educationmia@qm.org.qa.
Enriching Teens Programmes
This year, NMoQ is partnering with Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar for its virtual high school summer camp. Participants will explore education opportunities in art and design, while also taking part in a painting and printmaking course led by NMoQ. The camp runs from 12 – 23 July.
Interested? For more information about the high school summer camp and to sign up, contact sjan@qm.org.qa.
If you’re interested in something topical, from 5 – 9 July Weill Cornell University in Qatar, in partnership with NMoQ, is offering high schoolers the chance to delve into the history of pandemics in the country. This course comes in light of the current situation with COVID-19.
For more information, contact rmohamed@qm.org.qa.
Alternatively, why not put your detective skills to the test and attend MIA’s fake news workshop for teens? You’ll research famous forgeries and try and catch your fellow participants out in a game of true or false.
Perhaps you’ve wondered what goes on behind-the-scenes at museums? Teens can now get an exclusive glimpse of what it takes to run a museum with the “MIA In-depth” summer camp.
For more information on MIA’s summer camps and workshops, email educationmia@qm.org.qa.
Learn Something New as an Adult
Off of Doha’s Corniche, in the middle of crystal blue waters, a lone acacia tree sits on a small desert island. Does the image inspire you to paint? Then join NMoQ’s “Rediscovering Palm Island” online watercolour course. The programme begins on 6 July and runs for seven weeks. It is intended for young adults.
To find out more and register, contact programsnmoq@qm.org.qa.
At MIA, adults looking to get in on the fun can also attend a patterns and motifs workshop with visiting artist Laurelie Rae or a geometry workshop where you can learn how to create geometric patterns and stars from a web of circles.
For more details, contact educationmia@qm.org.qa.
All these programmes and more are available throughout July and August. Check in with MIA and NMoQ to stay up to date with all of their offerings.
Online Activities For Everyone
In addition to all that, NMoQ has an exciting lineup of crowdsourced virtual exhibitions that you can be a part of.
The four exhibitions are:
If you are interested in contributing, send one to three photos, illustrations and/or sketches along with a 100-word response about your exhibition of choice to nmoqexhibitions@qm.org.qa. All submissions will become a part of the museum’s digital archive.
Visit NMoQ’s exhibitions page for more details.
Keep Up with Qatar Museums
If you’d like to keep in touch, follow our museums on social media for weekly online activities and regular updates. Check in with @mathafmodern to learn more about a new contemporary artist from this region and so much more.
See MIA’s Collection online at Google Arts
If you’ve been missing close-up encounters with our museum treasures, MIA has uploaded new high-res images of objects in its collection on Google Arts & Culture.
The Latest from our Blog
Finally, remember to check back in with us each week to read about the opening of new exhibitions, behind-the-scenes and conversation with famous artists.
Add your comment