The session, titled “From the Realm of Poetry to the Oasis of Culture”, will be moderated by artist Ismail Al Rifai, Director of Translation and Arabic Content at Sharjah Art Foundation. It will shed light on key milestones in Dr Aydabi’s career, spanning decades of creative practice, cultural work and planning, and his contributions to establishing and developing a number of cultural projects and institutions.

The session will also revisit chapters from his rich career, with its experiences and insights linked to pivotal stages in cultural life. From poetry to theatre, and from journalism to the oasis of culture, his journey and its fruitful contributions in Sharjah reflect an enduring memory and a rich experience that the session seeks to explore and delve into. It will offer an opportunity to hear chapters of the foundations, visions and aspirations that contributed to establishing culture as a cornerstone and making Sharjah a destination for creators, dreamers and intellectuals from across the region and beyond.

Dr Yousif Aydabi is one of the prominent names in the Arab cultural scene. He is a poet, playwright, film critic and academic, and has been Cultural Adviser at Dr Sultan Al Qasimi Centre since 2009. He previously served as Dean of the Institute of Music and Theater in Khartoum and as a professor at universities in Sudan, Romania and the UAE.

He has authored numerous publications, including Al-Wafi fi Tarikh Al-Masrah fi Al-Sudan (Arab Theater Institute, 2025); Al-Turath Al-Sha'bi fi al-Emarat (Sharjah Institute for Heritage, 2014–2024); Fann Al-Sawt Al-Khaliji (Sharjah Institute for Heritage, 2022); and Al-Fan Al-Jadid Fi Al-Emarat (2018).

Throughout his cultural journey, Dr Aydabi has received several awards and honours, including the Award of Honour at Carthage Theatre Days (2024); the Award of Recognition and Honour at the Damascus Theater Festival (2010); the Culture and Media Pioneers Award from the Taryam Omran Foundation for Cultural and Humanitarian Works in the UAE (2010); and the Key of the City of Sharjah by His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi (2009).

Dr Aydabi holds a PhD in Theater History and Theory (Comparative Studies) from the University of Bucharest, which he obtained in 1979.

Ismail Al Rifai is an artist and writer whose work is rooted in the inner world of the human, the original site of becoming and the place from which ever-renewing forms emerge. For Al Rifai, creative practice is a process of revealing what lies hidden and unknown, where the image of the spirit takes precedence over outward form and individual experience converges with its universal origins.

He currently serves as Director of Translation and Arabic Content at Sharjah Art Foundation. He has presented numerous solo shows and participated in international biennials and other exhibitions. He is the author of several literary and critical publications, including A Promise on Closed Lips (2002), The Stairs of Clay (2006), At the Bend of the River (2021), Narrating Place: A Critical Reading of Sharjah’s Cultural Project (2022), and Inscriptions on the Cross (2025). He holds a BA in Fine Arts from Damascus University.