Government of Dubai Media Office: Marking the UAE’s 46th National Day celebrations and the ‘Year of Zayed’, Brand Dubai, the creative arm of the Government of Dubai Media Office, and Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), the leading financial Centre for the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) have unveiled artistic images of UAE leaders on the façade of The Gate building in DIFC. The twin scanography images portray the Father of the Nation, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

The unique 50x20 metre images were developed by Emirati artist Maitha Demithan using scanography, a technique in which digitised images captured with scanners are used to create printable art.

Director of Brand Dubai Maitha Buhumaid expressed her happiness at the cooperation with DIFC. She said: “The National Day celebrations are a great opportunity to express our love and appreciation for our national icons. We will always remember their efforts and hard work to create a strong foundation for this country and ensure its prosperity.” She said innovation and creativity are key features of all of Brand Dubai’s projects.

Senior Vice President of Operations, DIFC Authority Alya Al Zarouni expressed DIFC’s pride at featuring the images of the UAE leaders on the façade of The Gate. She also expressed her happiness at the cooperation with Brand Dubai and Maitha Demithan.

She said: “Our leaders are our role models in work, innovation and patriotism. DIFC would not be among the world’s top 10 financial centres without the vision of our leadership”.

Project Manager of Brand Dubai Shaima Al Suwaidi said the Government of Dubai Media Office seeks to celebrate the UAE National Day in an innovative way every year. Emirati artist Maitha Demithan’s unique creative approach for developing the images was a good fit for the project.  The two images depicted in the artwork represent the strong solidarity between generations in the UAE. The Gate building in DIFC serves as the ideal location for the images, she added.

On the idea behind the installation, Emirati artist Maitha Demithan said that the announcement of 2018 as ‘The Year of Zayed’ and the personality, charisma and vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum inspired her project. She said: “The idea was to bring together images of two great leaders that changed the history of the UAE, and place them facing each other to symbolise the commitment of the new leadership to follow in the footsteps of the Founding Fathers.”

The public are invited to share photos of the artwork on the Instagram accounts of Brand Dubai and DIFC using (#BrandDubai) (@BrandDubai) (#DIFC) and (@DIFC).

About Brand Dubai

Brand Dubai, the creative arm of the Government of Dubai Media Office, develops initiatives aimed at enhancing the look and feel of Dubai to reflect its unique character as one of the world’s most developed, fastest growing and culturally diverse cities. Brand Dubai’s initiatives are aligned with the directives of Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum to convert Dubai into an open museum, and promote aesthetic excellence and innovation, in partnership with government entities and departments, developers, artists and designers. Brand Dubai seeks to launch a range of initiatives and projects that communicate positive messages about Dubai’s unique culture, values and identity.

About Dubai International Financial Centre

The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is one of the world’s top ten financial centres, and the leading financial hub for the Middle East, Africa and South Asia.  The Centre provides a world-class platform connecting the region’s markets with the economies of Europe, Asia and the Americas and facilitates growth in South-South trade and investment. An onshore, international financial centre, DIFC offers a stable, mature and secure base for financial institutions to develop their wholesale businesses.

The Centre offers all the elements found in the world’s most successful financial industry ecosystems, including an independent regulator and judicial system with a common-law framework, a global financial exchange, inspiring architecture, powerful, enabling support services and a vibrant business community. The infrastructure within the district features ultra-modern office space, retail outlets, cafes and restaurants, art galleries, residential apartments, public green areas and hotels.

Located midway between the global financial centres of New York, London in the West and Singapore, Hong Kong in the East, DIFC (GMT +4) fills a vital time-zone gap with a workday that bridges the market and business hours of financial centres in both Asia and North America.

In 2015, DIFC launched its 2024 growth strategy, a blueprint for the next decade of growth of the financial hub. This strategy aims to stimulate trade and investment flows along the South-South economic corridor encompassing the Middle East, Africa, Southern Asia and Latin America. 

Currently, 1,750 active registered companies operate from the Centre, with a combined workforce of 21,611 professionals. 

DIFC continues to pursue expansion into new services and sectors within the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region, an area comprising over 72 countries with an approximate population of 3 billion and nominal GDP of US$7.4 trillion.

For further information, please visit our website: difc.ae, or follow us on Twitter @DIFC.

© Press Release 2017