Tribune News Network
Doha
Growing Kopi, Drinking Qahwa; Stories of Coffee in Qatar and Indonesia, a new exhibition taking visitors on a journey through the global history of coffee by exploring the coffee cultures of Qatar and Indonesia. This immersive exhibition will open at the National Museum of Qatar on October 24. Being organised in partnership with the National Museum of Indonesia, the exhibition is presented as part of the Qatar-Indonesia 2023 Year of Culture, an international cultural exchange designed to deepen understanding between the two nations and their people, and Qatar Creates, the year-round national cultural movement that curates, promotes, and celebrates the diversity of cultural activities in Qatar and connects residents and global audiences with Qatar’s creative industries. The exhibition will remain on view through 17 February 2024.
The exhibition was created by the joint curatorial teams from the National Museum of Qatar and the National Museum of Indonesia, including Exhibit and Multimedia Interpretive Specialist Dr. Marie-Pierre Lissoir, Social and Oral History Researcher Najma Ahmed, Deputy Director of Curatorial Tania Abdulmonem Al Majid, Associate Curator of Social History Sara Saqr Al Mohannadi, Associate Curator of Oral History Sara Al-Maadheed,Head Curator of Oral History Amal Al-Hideous and National Museum of Indonesia members Daroe Handojo, Prawoto Indarto, Sekar Arum Romadhani, Nusi Lisabilla Estudiantin. The exhibition brings to life the history of coffee growing, trading, and drinking around the world, with a particular focus on the traditional and contemporary coffee cultures of Qatar and Indonesia, using interactive displays, immersive projections, sights, smells, soundscapes, a specially commissioned contemporary artwork, and more.
"As Qatar and Indonesia have come together this year to celebrate their shared traditions, the importance of coffee culture in both nations has emerged as an area with significant meaning in daily life,” said Aisha Al Attiya, Director of Cultural Diplomacy at Qatar Museums.
Indonesia’s Ambassador to Qatar, HE Ridwan Hassan, said, "This exhibition will not only celebrate the rich tapestry of flavours that Indonesian farmers bring forth but also embodies the deep-rooted connections between cultures, transcending borders through a shared appreciation for hospitality, tradition, and building human connection. And so, I am particularly excited to see the final exhibition come to life.”
Dr. Marie-Pierre Lissoir added, "From a historical perspective, coffee is a fascinating commodity that connects the globe. Coffee-making rituals are integral parts of many cultures, including Qatar’s, which are on display in the National Museum of Qatar permanent galleries.”
Growing Kopi, Drinking Qahwa is organised in five thematic sections, ranging from growing to drinking coffee as part of shared traditions. The exhibition also explores topics ranging from sustainable farming to social and cultural development.
The exhibition’s first section, ‘What is Coffee?’, introduces the visitors to the coffee plant and its prized beans. It also explains the origins of the term kopi (coffee in Bahasa Indonesia) from the Arabic word for coffee, ‘qahwa’. Next, ‘Growing and Trading Coffee’ focuses on the history of coffee in the Arab World and Indonesia. It explains how coffee went from the forests of Ethiopia to Indonesia’s Java Island. This part of the exhibition also features a powerful contemporary art installation Bloom in Agony (2022), from the Indonesian artists’ collective Gegerboyo, which explores connections between Indonesia’s colonial heritage and modern coffee practices. Roasting and Brewing engages audiences through sensory experiences using coffee beans and spices highlighting different roasting and brewing traditions. Via videos, visitors can learn about ‘qahwa’ brewing from an elder Qatari coffee expert and enjoy a coffee-making competition showing the recipes of different Qatari families. Among the final section of ‘Growing Kopi, Drinking Qahwa’ is ‘Serving and Drinking’, which focuses on the rituals associated with coffee drinking in Qatar and Indonesia. Highlights in this section include a 360-degree projection that transports the visitor to Filosofi Kopi, an iconic coffee shop in the heart of Jakarta, while another circular space evokes a Qatari ‘majlis’. Inside, two screens display a short film created in collaboration with Qatari youth showing the complexity of the coffee serving and drinking etiquette in Qatar, often with humorous outcomes.