2 July 2013
What a fantastic group! The sentiment around the first batch was that the opening week would have not been the same without them. Their energy, humor , patience and most of all respect to the pavilion made this internship program and the opening of the exhibition a major success.
The first batch stayed the longest in Venice, having had the privilege and responsibility of being part of the preparations leading to the opening of the Exhibition. They worked on Media, visitor-relations, exhibition-management, and at some points helped our small team carry press packs and boxes around the biennale.
They were indeed super interns. We are very happy to have worked with Adel, Mohammed, Benedetta and Valentina and we wish them the best of luck in their careers. We can see how this trip have somehow changed their lives and perspectives on several things, but most importantly, allowed them to forge friendships in this city that they will always cherish.
The Italian interns who speak fluent Arabic now speak Arabic with an Emirati Dialect, and our Emirati interns are capable of communicating in Italian, and also learnt some venetian secrets that only locals of the city do. We are very proud of our program that allowed for these opportunities to realise themselves, and allowed us also to meet such wonderful people.
As part of the Venice Internship , an educational program is designed to allow the interns to interact with other pavilions in the Biennale, and learn how to critique the works, or engage with the art through their writings. Working with Emirati, Arab and Italian Interns they were given the option of writing in either Arabic or English.
The interns were provided free access to all museums in Venice, and also encouraged to visit the collateral events outside the biennale. The first batch really explored Venice and the biennale, and left behind them a wealth of writing and information for us to read and enjoy.
Following this post are their reviews of the Arab pavilions (of their choice) and their reviews of a museum in Venezia. We will be posting their writings this week as a celebration of their time with us.
We will miss Mohammed Al Serkal, Adel Al Jabri, Benedetta Lanza, and Valentina Pelosi, We wish them the best of luck, and hope that our paths will meet again soon. And we would like to take this opportunity to welcome the new batch of interns; Mariam Al Mazroui, Tala Worrell, Moza Al Matrooshi and Gabriella Quagliato who will be posting on this blog starting next week, and also tweeting from the Venice Internship Account: @veniceinterns.
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Mariam Wissam Al Dabbagh
