Baker Khalid Yousuf Baker is an Emirati artist of many talents, and loves exploring the use of bold colours and shapes when painting. His latest piece, ‘New Journey’ is a blend of rhythmic waves and energetic visual textures drawing on inspiration from his surrounding environment. Baker, along with other talented artists from Mawaheb, a Dubai based art studio dedicated to People of Determination, continues to show the world that disability does not define your limits, and with the help of Emirates, they will proudly be exhibiting their art for sale at the Emirates Official Store this Ramadan.

Emirates began its relationship with Mawaheb two years ago by jointly collaborating to create special edition, bespoke designs for the airline’s Ramadan boxes served onboard to passengers during the holy month. This year, The airline is honouring the spirit of Ramadan and supporting the positive impact art has on culture and society, and has partnered with Mawaheb, which means ‘talent’ in Arabic, to help sell pieces from its artists on the airline’s global Emirates Official Store platform, increasing their visibility, showcasing their brilliance, creativity and hard work and ultimately connecting them to art lovers all over the world. The artists, based in Dubai, have disabilities and are known as People of Determination in the UAE, in recognition of their achievements in different fields, and productive contributions to society.

All proceeds from the artwork will go to Mawaheb, a non-profit art studio, and all sales will directly support its operations and help keep its diverse programmes for People of Determination running. The studio helps to provide the tools, mediums, the space and the inspiration needed for People of Determination to nurture their talents and grow their abilities.

For Emirates’ bespoke Ramadan meal boxes, the Mawaheb artists closely worked with the airline’s in-house team, using the holy month as the inspiration for the art they would be creating. After a productive local community activity, the design was born and was later produced in two colour schemes. The boxes helped to showcase their talent and creativity from Dubai to the rest of the world.  Unfortunately, the studio had to close its doors due to the impact of the pandemic on creative communities but has since reopened with a brand new warehouse style studio in Al Quoz, a vibrant cultural neighbourhood in Dubai, to continue its mission of helping People of Determination realise their full artistic and creative potential.

A glimpse of the art from the collection on sale includes ‘Flowers’ and ‘Connecting the Dots’ by Rekha Kriplani, a talented artist with an impressive series of paintings who had her first solo exhibition in 2019; ‘Eye by AliOk’ by Iraqi artist Ali Al Salhi, whose art is characterised by precise, neat lines accentuated by bright and cheerful colours. Ali enjoys painting while listening to iconic classical Arabic singer Umm Kulthum; ‘The Warm Flowers of the Summer Spring’ by Mariam Ismail. Mariam is a gifted artist with many talents: story writing, painting and is experienced motivational speaker. She has a broad interest in gaming, pop culture and anime. Her dream is to become a voice actor;  ‘Dots Dots Dots’ by British artist Namrata Pagarani explores her love of colour; and ‘Landscape With Dots’ by German artist Leila Murgian, incorporates stippling techniques using lively colour schemes, inspired by her love of butterflies and hugs.

Emirates is an avid supporter of culture and arts in the UAE and around the world, and has been connecting with communities and helping feed their creative spirit by sponsoring and promoting diverse events and platforms across literature, music and art for more than 20 years.

Customers can visit https://www.emirates.com/af/english/experience/seasonal-occasions/ramadan/  for more information on the full Emirates Ramadan experience and how to travel in comfort during the Holy Month.