Is Dubai Really a Plastic City?

Dubai is a plastic city! There are no arts and culture in Dubai! Everything is fake! It’s not a creative city!

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard this in the first few months after I shifted to Dubai. Listen too much, and I’d probably turn right around and leave, golden visa or not. (Yes, I have one and will talk about how I got a golden cultural visa in a bit). I don’t know how long I’ll stay, because I don’t know how long I’ll stay anywhere, but I think that there’s more to the story.

Arts and culture in Dubai are not mainstream, but bubbles absolutely exist

First and foremost, we need to address the reality: arts and culture absolutely exist, and in fact, the tradition is old and established and present. It’s just, most of it is in Arabic, hidden in its pockets. Just because it’s not accessible to the average person doesn’t mean we should discount it.

Also, there are absolutely bubbles of thriving arts and culture scenes. Everyone talks about Alserkal and bemoans that it’s the “only” place, but also – sometime ago that didn’t exist. It’s easy to take for granted what is already there. There are more pockets coming up, like the nearby Al Khayat Avenue (home to kanvas Dubai, where I’m doing some interesting collabs!). And Alserkal really is astonishing and wonderful, full of festivals and open talks, genuinely creating a sense of creativity and innovation. I went to the Al Quoz Entrepreneurship Form in December 2024 and had a blast. Also, I learned a lot!

There are small communities of artists (Kave is a good example!), and people who are really interested and passionate. Culture is not mainstream, but let’s be real. There are very few cities in the world where it is, and even where it is accepted and traditional, how many of your average joes will go to the theatre? Is it really ‘mainstream’? Probably not.

There are arts and culture in Dubai. You just have to go looking for it, and be willing to see it when you find it.

Deep culture takes time to develop

Dubai has a cultural ministry, called Dubai Culture. They aren’t as active as the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism and I think it’d be cool if they had a roster of artists and a bit more support for expatriate artists. However, they do support local culture and Emirati makers quite well, and that’s brilliant. Why? Because culture does have to be nourished at the roots.

Yes, I think it would be better if they also support foreign artists, because pretty much everyone is a foreigner in this city. But there’s a problem with that. People come and go all the time here. Deep culture, from the grassroots, takes a long time to grow and establish. It’s hard when so many people just pass through the city. Abu Dhabi has a step up as it’s a bit less touristy than Dubai, so they have the chance to create something for residents. There are residents in Dubai, but many more tourists.

That may change with the golden visa schemes that have started in the past few years. Again, people are very impatient. The golden cultural visa, a ten year visa for artists with a few extra privileges around stay limits and ability to work, just started a few years ago. When I got mine in March 2024, the Amer Centers weren’t super sure how to handle it. That means it’s new, and unusual.

A note on that. I applied for the accreditation certificate via Dubai Culture and Arts Authority in February 2024. It’s an easy enough process and only requires your CV and portfolio. I took 2-3 weeks to put together a proper portfolio that tracks my 12 year career around the world, as well as all the press and articles written about me. I gathered everything in a 7 page CV that listed everything in the various places I’ve been and various things I’ve done. About a week after submitting, I received the confirmation of the certificate. I entered the country on a tourist visa and took the certificate to the Amer Center. Shortly thereafter, and after completing a medical test, I received the golden cultural visa and was able to apply for my Emirates ID.

Everything, including the medical test and EID, cost around 4,500 AED ($1225). After the difficulties I’ve had in getting Pakistani visas the last few years, to have a ten year visa dedicated to my artistic practice was intensely cool. Whether or not the cultural visa leads to long term change in the arts and culture, it is an awesome initiative.  

Isn’t it fun when everything is beginning?

The cynics say that it’s been beginning for a decade, but come on – does culture really develop in a decade? A lot of creatives who have been here for 12-15 years say that it does feel like everything is about to take off. The jaded ones say it’s felt like that for the whole time they’ve been there.

The thing is, for me personally, I’d rather be in a place that is beginning. I’d rather be part of the rooting, the gardening, the putting in seeds here and there to see how and if they grow. I’m less interested in a place where the rows are ready for me, a formula for exactly how and where to plant this or that seed. I like it when it’s new, and people are trying things, and it’s new and raw and a little uncomfortable.

And no, the fact that artists/the general public has certain restrictions on what can or can’t be said doesn’t particularly bother me. I realize that’s a controversial position to take, but I find that I’m not interested in making pointed work anyway, I’m interested in telling human stories that are accessible to people who both think like me and people who don’t. I also find that people who feel less free have a particular version of free that I don’t necessarily agree with (for example, free = nudity).

I can’t change the world, but how about that niche?

Is Dubai for all creatives? Maybe, maybe not. My point here is that there are arts and culture in Dubai, if you’re willing to find it and accept it. If it works for you, that’s great. If it doesn’t, there are plenty other places to go, it’s a big world. There’s so much to recommend this city – the dynamism, the diversity, the quality of living. There’s a lot to not – the crowding, the cost of living, the overwhelming commercial push.

I’m not going to be the person who makes Dubai a creative hub. Maybe it never will. But I’m going to find my little bubble (or make it), and inside that niche, create and create and create. I’m sure there are already others there, and will be more.