How does curriculum building take shape when designing residencies and capacity-building initiatives such as art residencies, writing retreats, or teaching fellowships?

This panel discussion brings together artistic practitioners and program leads who have shaped these programs to reflect on the considerations that go into sculpting such opportunities, what they look for in each cycle, why they believe these initiatives are essential to the UAE’s cultural and artistic landscape, and how their pedagogies have shifted over time.

The conversation aims to offer transparency and insight for artists, creative practitioners, and others who may be curious about these spaces but feel hesitant to apply. By opening up dialogue around process and practice, the session encourages more equitable, horizontal knowledge-sharing and highlights how residencies and programs can serve as vital platforms for growth and exchange.

This session features contributions from Sara Bin Safwan (Lead Facilitator for 421’s Homebound Residency Cohort 1 and other international residencies), Diego Del Pozo Barriuso (Co-founder of Full Special Studio and Program Lead), Abhirami Suresh (Program lead for the Youth Assembly at Jameel Arts Center), and Dana Al Mazrouei (Manager of Learning Intiatives at 421 inclusive of leading the Creative Facilitator and Internship Programs).

About your instructors:

Abhirami is the Curatorial Projects Coordinator at Art Jameel. She is the curator of the Youth Assembly programme and works with the Learning, Exhibitions and Programming teams to shape special learning projects at Art Jameel, prioritising youth communities, engagement and research-collaborations. Her work focuses on creating space for emerging voices and experimental forms of knowledge.

Abhirami's research and curatorial practice has been presented at international avenues including the Karama Arts Club (2025), Curatorial Fellowship with Kochi-Muziris Biennale (2022), the Young Curator Residency for Ras Al Khaimah Fine Arts Festival (2022), the London Design Biennale (2021) and the Ford Foundation Grant (2020).

Diego Mendoza (b. 1988, Mexico City) is an artist and an educator with a BFA in Painting and Printmaking from Virginia Commonwealth University, Qatar & and an MA in Educational Leadership from Framingham State University, USA. He has also been working in education for youth since 2015, teaching art history, visual arts, literature and philosophy in Mexico, Indonesia, Tanzania and the UAE. His expertise and interest in knowledge-exchange has led to several printmaking workshops and courses covering a wide range of techniques, from relief printing to RISO printing. 

Diego’s practice explores human iconography that transcends cultural and historical boundaries, focusing on how masculinity is constructed, performed, and visualized. His ongoing research traces representations of male power and violence as a mode to unpack the impact of socio-cultural baggage on himself. He was part of the 11th cohort of the Salama bint Hamdan Al Nahyan Emerging Artist Fellowship and his work has been exhibited in the UAE and the US. He is the creative lead of Full Special Studio, the first risograph commercial studio in the UAE that champions and supports locally and regionally based creatives.