Time Out at 40

Gordon Ramsay | Lateefa bint Maktoum | Bernie Ecclestone | Frankie Dettori Sulaiman Al-Fahim

Lateefa bint Maktoum

Lateefa bint Maktoum
Dubai may be more know for its skyscrapers than its art scene, but Lateefa bint Maktoum is striving to change that. As director of Tashkeel in Nad Al Sheba, Maktoum (who is niece of HH Sheikh Mohammed, UAE Prime Minister and Vice-President, and Ruler of Dubai) has created an affordable communal space open to all who arrive armed with a creative impulse.

You’ve been chosen as one of Time Out’s heroes. What do you think of that?
I was really surprised, as I’ve only recently started out. It’s an honour to be chosen and hopefully I’ll live up to it.

Who are your UAE heroes?
Of course, Sheikh Mohammed, he’s our main hero. He’s done so much for Dubai and for the UAE. A lot of people look up to him, and what he’s doing right now for the development of Dubai. I don’t think there’s a greater hero in the UAE now than him.

What’s the biggest thing that’s happened here in your own field?
I’m glad that [the annual fair] Art Dubai is happening and that they’re bringing galleries from abroad. When these galleries come, it raises the question of where the UAE artists are. I think Art Dubai is pushing more Arab artists to come out and show their work. Feature continues

What’s your favourite part of the UAE?
The life of the UAE is in its people. When you sit and talk with the people here, that is where the culture is. I think you have to interact with the people to get the identity of the place.

What was your favourite personal moment in the UAE?
I think what helped me to get to where I am today is interning at the Sharjah Biennial. I had to interact with so many different artists, from all over the world.

What does the future hold – for the UAE and for you?
I’m hoping to build up Tashkeel, to create more artist and residency programmes, to bring more artists from abroad to introduce them to what it is to be in the UAE, and hopefully to send artists out as well. We’ve experimented with that before by sending artists to Berlin and Rome, and it worked really well.

What does Time Out mean to you?
If I want to be updated on what’s happening, I grab Time Out.

Dubai is…
…an ever-changing landscape where I’ve been born and raised. Hopefully I will live here for a long time.

www.timeoutdubai.com; www.timeoutabudhabi.com

Gordon Ramsay | Lateefa bint Maktoum | Bernie Ecclestone | Frankie Dettori Sulaiman Al-Fahim