The Mizmah creation is the second of five life-size F1 replica cars painted by local artists as part of Yasalam’s series of exhibitions entitled The Art of Racing.
The first day of Yasalam’s Mastering Motorsport ended with a flourish in the capital when students and F1™ professionals enjoyed the unveiling of the Mizmah replica car. The first Ferrari model painted by Wasel Safwan is already displayed in Marina Mall. Yasalam is the city’s dynamic programme of F1™-related events and entertainment, created to bring the entire community together celebrating the UAE’s biggest sporting event.
Day one of the two-day Seminar held at Zayed University today, played host to 300 students as they heard from and interacted with several top F1™ speakers and the legendary driver, David Coulthard. The day finished with the first look at the modern and colourfully decorated Mclaren F1™ car designed by six Emirati girls dubbed the ‘UAE’s art girl band’.
The girls agreed upon using graffiti and calligraphy as the main decorative elements on the car, which they have dubbed ‘360 to the power of 6’. The base print of the car is a dimmed ‘Ghutra’, which is a traditional head garment made of overlapping red patterns. Layers have been used to build up to a more energetic and dynamic composition using a variety of materials, ranging from paint to actual car parts, creating interesting textures within the shell while maintaining the integrity of the shell design. The initial design has an overlay of global F1™-related words and concepts using vivid, bold and flamboyant colors to make it as eye-catching as possible for the public.
Mizmah wanted to depict Emirati youth, men and women and convey their passion for fast cars and what it means to now have the power of F1™ in Abu Dhabi. To include the girls’ identity in this piece of art, they created a poetic verse using both English and Arabic describing cars and car lovers. The verse includes words like ‘transmission’; ‘aerodynamics’; ‘gasoline’; ‘acceleration’ and ‘engine’, with the equivalent of these words also written in the Emirati dialect.
The Mizmah cars will remain in place for students to admire until November 2, 2009. The other body shell exhibits are displayed at Marina Mall, Emirates Palace from October 10th, Abu Dhabi Corniche from October 16th and Abu Dhabi International Airport from October 26th.
Founded in October 2008, Mizmah banded together to use traditional products in a contemporary way. The group, who are all graduates from Sheikh Zayed University in Abu Dhabi, is composed of two graphic designers, Buthena Al Muraikhi and Hyam Al Mureikhi, two interior designers, Mouza Mohamed Al Mazrouei and Sara Ali Alaidarous, and two mixed media artists Noora Ramah and Noora Al Qubaisi.
The word ‘Mizmah’ is a traditional Emirati word that describes a large container used since ancient times to group several items and they decided to use this word to describe the different types of art that they bring to the group.
Katja Heim, CEO of KHP Consulting, the company responsible for organising The Art of Racing, said: “We specialise in capturing the spirit of the sport and bringing its very essence to the people who matter the most, the fans. We do this with community engagement activities such as The Art of Racing, an initiative designed as part of the Yasalam programme to entertain the people of Abu Dhabi and the region. Talented artists, such as the Mizmah girls, who are transforming these body shells are a real highlight of the events planned in the build up to the race.”
John Lickrish, Flash Entertainment’s managing director, adds: “Flash is proud to be delivering this exciting initiative together with KHP Consulting. The customisation of Formula 1 replica cars by renowned Emirati artists epitomises our motivation behind Yasalam- to bring the spirit of racing to the people of Abu Dhabi in celebration of our capital playing host to the 2009 Formula 1, Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix."
For the full programme of Yasalam events and activities, visit www.yasalam.ae
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