Den Gallery, founded in May 2015, brings together contemporary artists, showcasing new approaches in the areas of painting, drawing, sculpture, and graphics. Located in Crystal Tower in Kuwait City, the gallery was founded by over 10 local artists who are all part of the Kuwaiti art community. Each member is immersed within different artistic movements and methods such as abstract art, surrealism, and calligraphy, among others. The gallery’s goal is not only to exhibit artist’s works to the public, but to also encourage them to become active members in society.
Although there are many founders, all of them work cohesively as a team with skills that complement each other. Interestingly, the team considers itself a family rather than employees who work together, straying away from titles and bureaucracy. Hussain Dexen, one of the founders of Den Gallery, sat down with us to give us a glimpse into what goes on behind the scenes at the gallery.
Who are some of the notable artists whose works have been exhibited at Den Gallery?
In the beginning, we exhibited the work of the founders of Den Gallery and after the gallery gained a positive reputation, many international artists showcased their work in solo exhibitions at the gallery. Those artists are now considered family members of Den Gallery and we are so proud of them. Some of the notable artists were William Stoehr from the USA, Hani Mazhar from the UK, Waddah Mahdi from Iraq, Babak Rashvand from Iran, Reza Doust from Canada, and Abbas Al-Mosawi from Bahrain.
What is the goal of Den Gallery?
The main aim of Den Gallery is to encourage the youthful energy within the Kuwaiti artistic field and also raise the reputation of Kuwait in the art scene globally. We believe it’s time for the youth to take part in improving contemporary art.
How does the gallery attempt to present new approaches in the different fields of art?
To do this, we provide many workshops in different trends for those who admire arts and painting. Those workshops are presented by artists from different schools of art for the public to learn the different trends in contemporary art. These workshops allow us to discover talents, improve their skills, and present them to the public through a special annual charity exhibition.
In what ways do you make the exhibitions stand out from exhibitions in other galleries?
By keeping away from repetition. This is so important for Den Gallery because if the audiences find us repeating ourselves in exhibiting artworks, they will get bored and may then lose their appetite for the arts. For this reason, we try our best to present something new and attractive for the public and here comes the responsibility of the founders of Den Gallery, where they are obliged to improve themselves.
