The works selected from each of the two open calls will be featured in the upcoming printed version of Al Journal by Liwan Design Studios and Labs. The journal comprises of a collection of essays, articles, reviews, and visuals exploring contemporary design themes across the Middle East and beyond. Featuring pioneering Qatari creatives, the journal connects local and global design voices and encourages collaboration and commentary on creative, cultural, and intellectual matters.
In collaboration with Tasweer, Liwan invites photographers to submit work captured in Qatar during the COVID-19 pandemic and/or during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™.
OPEN CALL 1 | DESIGN AND PANDEMICS
We encourage photographers across Qatar to submit their best proposals of how they experienced and captured Qatar during the COVID-19 pandemic. From social distancing to masking up, we would like to see this challenging and unique period through your eyes.
The emergence of Covid-19 and the ongoing lockdowns changed the way we live. Chronicles of those early days of the pandemic read like opening chapters of dystopian sci-fi books. Global self-isolation and social distancing measures were implemented, words like 'quarantine', 'super-spreader', and 'anti-vax' entered our lexicon, and travel became synonymous with a 'traffic light system'. Like all industries and professionals, from frontline healthcare workers to educators, designers have also had to adjust and respond to the changing climate urgently. How have designers responded to the global pandemics past and present? And what role does design play in providing solutions when global catastrophes arise?
The timely theme for our first issue of Al Journal is 'Design in Pandemics', a look at how designers have long responded to global epidemics from the Spanish flu to the most recent COVID-19 virus and the important role that design has played in curbing the spread of viruses.
OPEN CALL 2 | DESIGN AND SPORTS
We encourage photographers across Qatar to submit their best proposals of how they experienced and captured Qatar during FIFA. From fans worldwide packing metros and chanting for their teams to Souq Waqif's endless flow of festivities, we would like to see this incredible and fun period through your eyes.
When Qatar's FIFA 2022 poster was revealed, viewers saw a vibrant black and white image depicting traditional headwear (ghutra) thrown playfully into the air with a football. Furthermore, La'eeb, the fun and adventurous national mascot, was created entirely from traditional headwear, with both designs paying tribute to Qatar's cultural identity and heritage. Whether a graphic designer creates a culturally significant poster or logo, an architect builds a sustainable and dismountable stadium, or even a fashion designer makes waves with the latest Air Jordans—the role of design in sports is prominent. How has design been used to shape a certain sport or team identity? And how is design in sports responding to global concerns such as pandemics, sustainability, and inequality?
The theme for our second issue of Al Journal is 'Sports and Design', a look at how design has been used to push the game to new levels. Discover the remarkable stories between sports and design, from stadium design to poster, logo, fashion, and tech, and how design in sports has been used to bring global and local communities together.
Proposals for this open call will be jury-selected. If your photograph(s) is chosen, you will be awarded 800 QR per image and your image will be featured and referenced in the digital and printed version of Al Journal. You will also be invited to the opening event of Al Journal in early 2024.