Ammar Al Attar: Plaza Cinema

Ammar Al Attar’s project “Plaza Cinema” stems from the artist’s efforts to rescue old filmstrips, movie posters and ephemera from decommissioned theaters in the UAE.

These aging movie-houses are touchstones of Dubai’s modern history and places of deep personal meaning and memory for residents. In January 2017, Al Attar recreated a series of thirty movie posters from Plaza Cinema, a recently shuttered theater in Bur Dubai, as a prelude to his project.

In March, the artists presents an installation of the materials he rescued, providing a rare opportunity to analyse and consider how film often connects diverse migrant communities – many of whom are in the UAE for work – with narratives and images of home.