A Warm Welcome to our first issue!
Inside, you’ll find three ways to explore how cultures connect and ideas travel. We begin with a world tour of stories that have inspired us over the past three months: moments of dialogue, exchange and creative collaboration from across the globe. Next, we invite you into a special conversation with Manuel Rabaté, the first Director of Louvre Abu Dhabi, as his tenure comes to a close and he prepares for a new chapter in India. We close with a reading suggestion to enjoy while you await the next issue.
Three sections, one journey. Read on.
Funding & creativity
IrelandIreland Makes Basic Income for Artists Permanent
Many would say it’s hard to make a living as an artist. Ireland is set to make a weekly income scheme for artists permanent in September. Advocates say it supports the cultural sector and gives artists stability to develop their practice. (Source: ARTnews)
Could guaranteed income for creatives work and will other countries follow?
THAILAND & JAPANNew Fellowship to Foster Asian Art Exchange
Art Collaboration Kyoto announced a new initiative, the Bangkok Collaborate Kyoto Fellowship (BCK Fellowship) that provides financial support, a residency and an exhibition at Bangkok Kunsthalle. This initiative will foster exchange across Asia and open new creative pathways. (Source: Art Collaboration Kyoto)
UAEAbu Dhabi to Back Global Creative Industries Ecosystem
Ethmar International Holding (EIH) and Guggenheim Brothers Media are launching a multi-million-dollar investment fund targeting media, entertainment and the digital creative economy. It will focus early to growth-stage companies across content creation, creator tools and infrastructure, digital intellectual property, entertainment technologies and platforms supporting fan engagement and new forms of storytelling. (Source: Gulf Business)
UK & EstoniaNew Private-led Curatorial Fellowship between London and Tallinn
Philanthropist and Vinted co-founder Justas Janauskas launched the Upė Foundation, a new arts initiative strengthening cultural ties between the U.K. and the Baltics. Supporting emerging curators through funded exchanges and institutional partnerships, Janauskas said the foundation aimed to ‘support the people who will write the next chapter’ of contemporary art through long-term dialogue and collaboration. (Source: Ocula)
Following the openings of YDP and Ibraaz in London last October, this is another interesting example of the private sector stepping in. Will this pave the way for how funding “cultural diplomacy” might work going forward? This is also a good reminder of a pivotal role of the diaspora play in fostering cultural exchange across the globe.
Cultural Policy & Cultural Diplomacy
BRAZILBelém’s Cultural Transformation Ahead of COP30
Before heads of state, diplomats and scientists gathered in Belém for COP30 in November 2025, the city underwent rapid cultural and infrastructural change. The new phase of the Porto Futuro complex included the Museu das Amazônias. It debuted with an exhibition by acclaimed photographer Sebastião Salgado who passed away last May. (Source: Government of Pará | Valor Econômico)
SOUTH KOREA & USAThe Met Returns Buddhist Scroll to South Korea
The Metropolitan Museum of Art restituted The Tenth King of Hell (1798) to Sinheungsa Temple in Korea, decades after it was taken during the Korean War. The return highlighted the museum’s Cultural Property Initiative, launched in 2023 to accelerate provenance research and restitution, with recent returns to Greece, Turkey, and Iraq. The initiative involved expanding staff, enhancing research, and coordinating closely with governments, cultural institutions and religious authorities to facilitate cross-border heritage collaborations. (Source: Artnet)
FRANCE & MEXICOFrance and Mexico Exchange Colonial Codices
During French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Mexico in November, the two countries announced reciprocal loans of colonial-era codices. The Codex Azcatitlán, housed in France’s National Library, will be displayed in Mexico as part of exhibitions marking the bicentenary of diplomatic relations, while the Biblioteca Nacional de Antropología e Historia will loan its Codex Boturini to Paris. (Source: ARTnews)
ITALY & SAUDI ARABIA Furniture Fair Salone del Mobile Milano Heads to Riyadh
The Saudi Ministry of Culture and the Italian Federation of Woodworking and Furniture are bringing the iconic furniture fair to Riyadh in November 2026. It aims to valorise Italian design and foster a fruitful exchange of skills and creativity between Italian makers and Saudi designers, creating a cultural and commercial bridge between the two countries. (Source: Dezeen)
EUROPEArtistic Rights under Pressure
A timely report published in January 2026 by the Performing Arts Coalition examines how performing arts professionals are navigating artistic freedom, cultural participation and cultural rights, offering grounded insights and policy recommendations to inspire meaningful action in Europe and beyond. (Available via International Network for Contemporary Performing Arts)
Cultural Hotspots to Watch
NIGERIANigeria’s Growing Art Scene Shaped by Next Generation
Art X Lagos held its tenth edition in 6-9 November, highlighting a new wave of Nigerian artists whose work is rooted in tradition. Supported by emerging collectors, galleries, and initiatives such as the Yinka Shonibare-founded GAS Foundation, the fair reflected the sector’s growing infrastructure and international reach. “Nigeria feels alive with possibility,” said artist and photojournalist Yagazie Emezi. (Source: The Art Newspaper)
SINGAPORESingapore Consolidates Its Role as Southeast Asia’s Art Hub
Singapore continues to cement its status as a leading art hub in Southeast Asia, acting as a crossroads where artists, institutions and audiences from across the region converge. Backed by strong government support, major museums and events such as Art SG (23-25 January) and Singapore Art Week (22-31 January), the city champions art beyond national boundaries; as collector Andreas Teoh noted, Singapore could ‘really take the role of being the melting pot for all the artists in the region, and be the beacon for Southeast Asian art’. (Source: The Art Newspaper)
Transmission, Heritage, Crafts & Design
FRANCE & CHINA Kering, the Gobal Luxury Group, Champions Emerging Talents in the Fashion World
Kering with iconic brands Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent and Bottega Veneta launched the CRAFT (Creative Residency for Artisanship, Fashion and Technology) programme in China, in partnership with Shanghai Fashion Week and the Shanghai Fashion Designers Association, to support emerging Chinese designers through an residency between Shanghai, Milan and Paris focused on craftsmanship, design and business, encouraging dialogue around creativity. (Source: FashionNetwork France)
SINGAPORESingapore’s Heritage Reborn
The historic House of Tan Yeok Nee, Singapore’s last traditional Teochew mansion, reopened to the public after 140 years, offering a curated heritage gallery, fine dining restaurant and event spaces, marking a new chapter in conservation and cultural experience. Watch Behind the scenes with Teochew master craftsmen from China for the conservation work done. (Source: The Straits Times)
Togetherness
KENYAKoyo Kouoh’s Final Lesson on Pan-African Solidarity
Following the passing of Curator Koyo Kouoh, the Nairobi convening titled “The Power of Arts and Culture for Healing” in May 2025 brought together artists from across the continent and held deep significance for Rashida Bumbray. She reflected that the gathering underscored a shared purpose- a means of building collective power. As Bumbray noted, our survival depends on intentional connections and solidarity. (Source: Hyperallergic)
USAEs Devlin Invited Visitors to Bond Over Books
The artist and stage designer created a space for dialogue in Miami Beach during the city’s art week in December. The idea of collective reading grew after she realised how smartphones had fragmented her attention. Devlin was also inspired by the Haskell Free Library on the border between Canada and the US, a site where people could meet across national lines. (Source: The Art Newspaper)
USAChampioning the Communal Joy of the Cinema Experience
Elizabeth Olsen highlighted the irreplaceable experience of watching films in a cinema, saying she would not join a studio production without a guaranteed theatrical release. There’s something about being in the same room with others that screens can’t replicate, evoking the energy and warmth of shared moments. When did you last step into a cinema, visit a museum, or attend a live music, dance, or sports event? (Source: InStyle)
SPAINMusic Without Borders: Rosalía’s Multilingual Album
Singer Rosalía pushed boundaries as she released an album Lux featuring lyrics sung in 13 languages: Rosalía’s native Spanish, but also Catalan, English, Latin, Sicilian, Ukrainian, Arabic, German and more. “It’s a lot of trying to understand how other languages work,” she said in The New York Times interview. (Source: The New York Times)
INDIA Co-existence At the Heart of Recent Literary Festivals
The theme how to live alongside one another emerged strongly at recent literary festivals. Writers and thinkers reflected on the urgent challenges facing India and the world, with Shashi Tharoor warning of rising global tribalism. Yet he stressed that literature lets us step into the ‘chappals’ of another and recognize that beneath our differences, our aspirations are remarkably similar. (Source: The Hindu )
CURIOSITY AS PRACTICE: A CONVERSATION WITH MANUEL RABATÉ
Portrait written by Anaïs Aguerre, Founder and Director of Culture Connect
I sat with Manuel Rabaté as he brings to a close his tenure as the first Director of the Louvre Abu Dhabi, after eighteen years, from the project’s earliest conception to its establishment as a global cultural institution. He now prepares for a new chapter in India as the first chief executive and director of the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art in Delhi. It felt fitting to open the series of our ‘Cultural Bridge Builders’ in Echoes from Afar with Manuel. Indeed, few careers illustrate so clearly what it means to work internationally with patience, attentiveness and a sustained sense of purpose.
Manuel has spent much of his professional life navigating complexity, though he is wary of grand descriptions. When the subject came up in our conversation speaking in general terms about the intricacies and challenges that define international cultural collaboration today, from the overlapping expectations, the negotiations or the acts of translation it involves, he smiled and replied, almost as an aside: “Your career is complexity. That should be my motto.” The comment was light-hearted yet telling. In his work, complexity has never been something to flatten or resolve, but a condition to engage with, carefully and over time.
That sensibility was shaped early on. At the Louvre in Paris and later at the Musée du Quai Branly, Manuel was immersed in debates that continue to define museum practice today: questions of representation, global art histories and institutional responsibility. These were not abstract discussions, but matters of daily decision-making: what to show, how to frame narratives and how museums position themselves in relation to both national traditions and international audiences.
These perspectives proved essential to his commitment from the outset of the Louvre Abu Dhabi project, where he was tasked with transforming a multidimensional intergovernmental agreement into a functioning and widely embraced museum. What might once have been perceived primarily as a political initiative became an institution that has found resonance locally, regionally and internationally. When the museum opened in 2017, it welcomed more than one million visitors in its first year alone, and it has since consistently ranked among the world’s most visited museums. Its success, however, cannot be reduced to numbers or architecture. As Manuel sees it, credibility is built through choices. Museums are shaped by how they construct narratives, how they acknowledge difference and how they allow multiple histories to coexist without being reduced to a single story.
A central lesson from Manuel’s experience is that working internationally requires a particular approach to leadership. “My job was mediation, not imposition,” he told me, likening the process to jazz rather than orchestral performance: a shared structure that leaves room for interpretation, dialogue and negotiation. For those navigating cross-cultural contexts, this offers a clear takeaway: clarity of intent matters, but adaptability is essential.
Leading a highly international team over many years further sharpened this approach. Rather than relying on assumptions or familiar models, Manuel learned to focus on outcomes while listening closely and remaining attentive to nuance, particularly where communication styles and decision-making processes diverge across cultures. Leadership in such environments, he observed, requires “a taste for curiosity and otherness.”
When asked what he is most proud of, Manuel’s answer was immediate: the people. While the museum’s public success is evident, he returned repeatedly to the importance of teams, shared purpose and professional growth. His reminder that a museum rests on four pillars - the building, the collection, the narrative and the people - offers a broader lesson for international work: long-term success depends as much on relationships and trust as it does on vision.
As he looks ahead to his role at the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art (KNMA), Manuel enters a very different yet equally layered cultural landscape. KNMA is at a moment of transformation, expanding into a new purpose-built campus and redefining its place within India’s contemporary art ecosystem. The task ahead will once again require balance: between local specificity and international dialogue, between ambition and attentiveness.
Manuel’s journey offers a reminder that cultural diplomacy is rarely about grand gestures or quick results. It is built slowly, through listening, negotiation and curiosity in practice. For those working across borders, his career suggests that complexity is not something to overcome, but something to work with, patiently, collaboratively and with care.
Our quick-fire round
1. When did ‘international’ first enter your life? Did you know then it would stick?
My first international exposure was Germany. It wasn’t far, but it was my first encounter with a foreign language. I think it’s important. It all starts with language. At the Baccalaureate, I even got a bad grade in English because I spoke with a German accent! It took me years to return to a proper French accent in English...
2. What’s the secret to a great international collaboration, and what do people gain from it?
You need to genuinely enjoy being with people from different cultures. International work only works if it’s rooted in this curiosity and desire of the alterity. You need to feel that exposure to other ways of seeing the world doesn’t threaten who you are but rather helps you understand yourself better. You learn from others, you exchange, you respect them, and in turn, you respect yourself. That mutual respect becomes the engine of meaningful collaboration.
3. Which projects best capture your international work? What’s next?
The Louvre Abu Dhabi is central, of course. Looking forward, I am excited about the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art in Delhi: a project that will explore the very identity of South Asian and Indian art, grounded locally but resonant internationally. It will combine extraordinary architecture, a remarkable collection, and a talented team. For me, it’s about continuing to discover, exchange and dialogue.
4. How do you see international collaboration evolving in today’s complex world?
The projects that endure are not driven solely by politics and official multilateral platforms. Sustainable progress comes from what makes sense from the museum, curatorial, collection, or visitor perspective. Most successful exchanges happen through a series of interconnected bilateral moments over time - often institution to institution, or between curators and collectors - rather than top-down political directives. Politics can have an echo, but only if there is something that already makes sense. Otherwise, it doesn’t last.
5. Is there a work of art, performance, or film that, for you, captures the essence of cultural exchange?
It’s less a single work than a phenomenon: the transmission of myths and storytelling across cultures. For example, Kalila wa Dimna, Indian fables travelling through Persia and the Arabic world to La Fontaine in France, evolving along the way. It shows how stories can connect people across time and geography.
6. One book you’d press into someone’s hands to spark their curiosity about the world?
There isn’t a single universal book. For me, discovering poetry before my baccalaureate, particularly the work of Arthur Rimbaud, was transformative. Any work, whether poetry, myth or story, that encourages curiosity, challenges what you think you know, and opens you to otherness can ignite engagement with the wider world. Another book I might suggest is Omeros by Derek Walcott.
Our Reading Recommendation
Too often, we bring our own assumptions and agendas to our conversations with others. It is common to feel that we already know the ‘right’ way of thinking about something, so when people disagree or promote conflicting ideas, we might not be really interested in listening to them. Deep Listening guides readers to remove these obstacles and biases and have transformative conversations with family and friends. The book is just as relevant for working internationally where deep listening becomes essential for understanding differences, building trust and working well together across cultures. The author, Emily Kasriel draws on decades of experience as an award‑winning BBC World journalist and media executive including leading the BBC British Council Crossing Divides project and training thousands in deep listening around the world. She brings real authority to her insights.