Scary Halloween tunnel!

Once at the desk, people registered, paid and got their share of the UV paint we’d organised. We were really impressed with the effort people made to dress up – people, you’ve got style!

Excellent costumes!

Our guests were then exposed to the horror movie snippets and sound effects playing on the screen at the back of the gallery. 

Everyone had a choice to either sit in the more private Blair Witch Project-like tents, or at the set-up tables. The tables with the UV lights together with the green and red lasers helped create a pretty eerie and interesting ambience that completely changed the look of the Jam Jar as we all know it.

Once people helped themselves to the yummy popcorn we served and started to paint, the tables seemed to come alive. Neon creatures and illustrated patterns looked as though they were jumping right off the page at us! We’d forgotten what a cool effect UV paint can have!

UV effects on the UV doodles!

The “What on earth am I going to paint??!!” phobia quickly disappeared, as the UV  lightwas so much fun to play with, and everyone seemed to become addicted to it. It was also pretty relaxed in the sense that anyone who wanted to try spinning LED poi did so. Renata: I think I could have a few recruits for some poi lessons!

LED poi was the right way to go for special effects.

All in all, people REALLY enjoyed it because it was something completely different. We overheard many people saying how great the place looked, how much they loved the idea, and how wonderful they felt the whole project was. We had a blast doing it and can’t wait for the final night to exhibit the awesome submissions we got from this event!

…days left to doodle!!!!!

Although it’s not the easiest place to find if you’re new to Dubai, the Fridge served as a great venue for the Hip Hop Symposium, as well as for another Doodle. Downstairs, we had sofas and beanbags, as well as delicious food available for hungry folks. Upstairs, the stage was set to welcome acts such as The Recipe (we love these guys – they’re amazing!), spoken word master from Lebanon – Hussein, the songstress Melisa Mestiza (also our hook-up at The Fridge), and some ‘wow’ b-boy dancers! The Brown Monkeys also came out to play, teaming up with Legion artists and Ubik to create a live mural throughout the show.

Check out these pics to see what we’re talking about:

The Brown Monkeys working on a collaborative mural during the gig.

The Recipe, Melisa Metsiza and Hussein dropping some lyrics and beats.

The mural takes shape.

B-Boy action taking place.

Hussein shares the word.

We decided to do something a little different this time. Instead of asking all you wonderful people out there to start from scratch, we thought we’d offer you a small exercise in ‘customising coolness’. So we drew up a couple of different templates of characters, copied them as many times as we could, and stuck them up all over the wall at Alpha. It was awesome to see everyone taking something pre-existing and turning it into their very own thing! We’ve now ended up with another super stack of amazing doodles as well! And just as we’d suspected, Dubai is full of artistic talent! 

Doodlers!

Just a reminder that if you have spare moments on your hands in the middle of the night, over a bowl of cereal, while on the phone, while pushing a shopping trolley, and at any other time you can think of – get doodling! We’ve included a simple diagram of the procedure for those of you who have not doodled in a while. 

We’re looking forward to seeing your masterpieces.

Doodle@theWalk

What was so great about having the doodle take place at the Walk was that it wasn’t limited only to the people who already knew about it. We’d placed a load of beanbags on the grass, so that everyone would feel relaxed and comfy, and we had so many spontaneous doodlers join us to sit and draw. We ended up collecting over 200 drawings from children, teenagers, parents, professional illustrators etc.

We always encourage people to bring art supplies along to the doodles, but we also made up our own lucky doodle packets, which we sold for AED15 each. They contained just what a doodler needs to get started and were a hit. I think we’re going to make up more of these, since people liked them so much. It’s a good feeling to know that we’re one step closer to helping others. If you’re still wondering what we’re going to do with all the proceeds, visit this site: www.gulf4good.org What next? Well, we definitely have more doodles planned. Our next one is going to be taking place at the Jam Jar on the 31^st October. Yes, we know that’s the night of Halloween… and we’re looking forward to it, so make sure you don’t double-book yourself!

Hello Doodlers.

It’s time for our second Doodler Event. This time we’re having it on the lawn at the Covent Garden Market @ the JBR Walk (Outside Paul’s Cafe).
And yes, you can buy coffee close by, mmmm…

So bring yourselves and your art supplies, don’t worry about paper, we’ve got that covered unless you have something unique you wanna doodle on of course.

We will be selling Lucky Dip Art Packets for AED15 each and all proceeds go to the night of 1000 drawings fund raiser. All ages are welcome.

SO COME DRAW & CHILL WITH US, WE WON’T BITE

Start Time: Thursday, October 1, 2009 at 5:00pm
End Time: Friday, October 2, 2009 at 9:00pm
Location: Covent Garden Market
Street: The Walk at Jumeirah Beach Residence (outside Paul’s Cafe)
City/Town: Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Phone: +971559424108
Email: dxb@1000drawings.co.za

A team of volunteers is out to help charities get through tough times, with the aid of 1,000 drawings

The alarm bells have been sounding non-stop for Emma Pinkerton, Meghan Cabral, Rollan Rodriguez and Renata Giovannoni ever since the global financial crisis first made headlines. But it’s not the thought of their own bank balances that’s making them meet up after a hectic day at work. The quartet hops from one café to another to discuss ideas on how to help charities breathe easy during these difficult times.These creative youngsters are collectively called The Legion DXB — an offshoot of a South African group which aids good causes through art events. One such event, called Night of 1,000 Drawings, saw the Johannesburg group bring together artists and members of the public to create sketches and drawings in a huge occasion. The individual works were eventually sold for around Dh50 each, with the proceeds benefiting an organisation called Paballo Ya Batho, which has helped feed homeless people in the city for more than 18 years. It was events like these that caught the eye of South African Giovannoni. She says, “I went to some of the meetings and liked the idea and what they were doing. David Quan Chong, who started the entire concept, came to Dubai and asked me whether I would like to start The Legion DXB here. I thought it was a great idea as the emirate is desperate for such things. Later, David asked me to get a team together.”

Besides South Africa and Dubai, The Legion also operates a similar art group in Amsterdam, Holland, helping to spread the word of its brand of artistic fundraising around the globe. The Legion DXB aims to raise awareness about smaller charities in the city that may have been overlooked, as well as get people excited about art and being creative.

The group was so inspired by its South African counterparts’ Night of 1,000 Drawings event, that work is underway to hold a similar event in Dubai. “We’ve started holding pre-events to collect the 1,000 drawings and doodles we need from charitable individuals — be they artists, calligraphers or people wanting to contribute some of their time and creativity to a good cause. The main event will be held on November 25 at Art Sawa,” says Pinkerton. “With the whole world in a financial crisis,” she adds, “we can only imagine how charities are struggling to raise money.”

Cabral says: “It is going to be something Dubai has never seen before. One thousand drawings from people from all walks of life — the general public, artists, celebrities and even some people who have flown in from South Africa — will all be displayed equally in an awesome location, with the profits going to charity.”

Money raised at the event will be handed over to Gulf for Good and The Palestinian Children Relief Fund, among other good causes.

At the group’s first event, Doodle at the BBQ, held on September 7, more than 80 enthusiastic participants flocked to The Shelter gallery in Al Quoz to submit their drawings. “It was great to have such a variety of people — students, designers, teachers, hair-stylists, auditors, IT workers and speech therapists — they were all taking part. It is amazing how many people say they can’t draw, but then when you start doodling in a relaxed environment, it actually turns out to be quite fun,” says Cabral.

With so many talented illustrators attending the event, most of the drawings were of a high standard, but most importantly, all submissions were hand-drawn. “We have collected a wide variety of drawings so far. Some of them have been posted on our Facebook page, although nothing can be computer-generated,” says Cabral, adding, “Everything needs to be done by hand. Even the logos of our sponsors are drawn by hand.”The emphasis on using paper, pencils and sketch pens stirred up fond memories for the team. So while Rodriguez, now an accomplished graphic designer, found himself in the unusual position of sitting on the floor while working on posters with pots of paint, he enjoyed the experience.“The event itself is so alive. Drawing with brushes, paints and colours took me back to my college days and the old methods of working. Here, we have the chance to draw with our hands, like we used to.”Cabral explains the group has a lot in common when it comes to art and doing what they love. “We are all passionate about creativity and trying to inspire creativity in others, plus we all work in similar jobs in advertising agencies. We have all seen the hardships of poverty and consider ourselves fortunate to be in a position where we are able to give back in some way,” she says.Running such a large event brings with it inevitable hiccups and teething problems. “There seems to be a lot more red tape here, which we are slowly learning about,” explains Cabral “There are only 11 or 12 registered charities in Dubai, so it seems far simpler if you are on the list. Gulf for Good falls under the umbrella of the International Humanitarian City, which is a registered charity. There are a lot of people who have gone out of their way to help us through the process,” she adds. “No one seemed to know the legalities behind getting permission for events like fundraising. There was a lot of confusion regarding that,” says Giovannoni.Though all charities, big and small, are noble in thought and action, it is the smaller institutions that the team is eager to help out. “There are a lot of bigger charities that are doing very well. We want to help the smaller ones who get no publicity. We want to put their names out there,” says Giovannoni. She says being part of The Legion DXB has kept her awake at night. “It’s a 24-hour job. I barely sleep, I keep thinking about the event and the people I have to get in touch with to make it work.”

However, it’s the end result of helping good causes that keeps the team together and working hard. “Knowing that we are doing it all for a good cause, and inspiring Dubai to be more creative at the same time, keeps us going,” says Cabral.