Heritage is not fixed in the past but reinvented in real time

Arriving in Abu Dhabi a dozen years ago, I encountered a landscape of untapped promise. The vast desert surrounding NYU Abu Dhabi’s campus held potential, waiting for the promise of cultural institutions and the commitment to arts and heritage that would shape its future. Today, I am part of an ever-expanding cultural community, where individuals move between museums, festivals, concerts, and performances.

Some who arrived initially to experience the arts now contribute their own creative works. New institutions emerge, and new colleagues form friendships and collaborations.

The International Day of the Intangible Cultural Heritage invites reflection on how these interactions enable individuals to draw from the past, learn from one another, and shape the cultural legacy that future generations will inherit. Heritage is not static; it is continuously reimagined through music, storytelling, crafts, performance, celebrations, and knowledge passed down across generations.

These traditions are perpetuated by communities through education and participation, adapting to the evolving lives of their members. Our role is to empower those who carry these practices forward.

For me, the arts function as social infrastructure, offering individuals with diverse experiences a reason to gather and become part of a community. A performance might initiate a conversation, introduce future collaborators, or inspire someone to recognize their own story worth sharing. Continuous opportunities for participation, creation, and learning transform cultural investment into a lasting contribution to a country’s life.

Earlier this month, I joined a LiveX panel where Prof Adrian Lahoud, from the Royal College of Art, contrasted the allure New York held for earlier waves of newcomers with what Abu Dhabi and Dubai symbolize today. As a New Yorker, I recognize the same energy of ambitious individuals arriving with varied experiences and a conviction that they can collectively build a life together.

Abu Dhabi’s cultural identity will continue to evolve from its Emirati roots and the lives and encounters of its residents. Its neighborhoods and artistic communities will differ from New York’s, and the significance of these early steps may not be fully appreciated for generations to come. I recall the words of Zaki Nusseibeh, cultural adviser to the UAE President, in The New York Times, from the week I arrived in 2014.

He acknowledged that culture cannot be created instantly, stating, “We know we cannot create culture overnight.” He envisioned a future where Abu Dhabi would have its own cultural elite, allowing young people not to seek opportunities abroad for artistic education.

We are already moving toward this aspiration. I have met individuals who first visited Abu Dhabi as high school students, became NYUAD students, engaged with unfamiliar performances, participated in workshops, and have become artists whose work we present and commission. A children’s matinee can plant a seed of possibility that persists for years.

Artists require opportunities to refine their craft and maintain their careers. The Arts Centre’s Numoo professional development accelerator offers practical knowledge and fosters networks across art forms and backgrounds. Participants forge new collaborations and develop works that could not have been envisioned when they were brought together, revealing stories that enlighten others about life in Abu Dhabi.

The UAE’s annual celebration of National Day, Eid Al Etihad, prompts the question: how do we forge a national narrative? Poets and musicians from diverse backgrounds are selected collaboratively by curators from the UAE’s literary and performing arts communities. Sharing stories shaped by their histories, heritages, and personal experiences of home, they provide a platform for the country’s multitude of voices and languages.

This year’s collaboration with Public Art Abu Dhabi extends this opportunity for collective storytelling. In the same LiveX conversation, architect Bjarke Ingels referenced Leonard Cohen’s line, “There is a crack in everything / That’s how the light gets in,” speaking to the openings for the unforeseen in a city’s development, where unexpected magic can occur.

Communities maintain these traditions through teaching and participation, adapting them as their lives change. To embody this intention, creating conditions for serendipity is essential: affordable communities where artists can reside together, meet regularly, exchange ideas, and stumble upon collaborators. Urban planning can facilitate these encounters even when their outcomes remain unpredictable.

Some initiatives may falter or alter direction; others will emerge with greater significance through an unexpected contribution.

A cultural scene thrives when it embraces the spirit of imperfection, acknowledging that failure can be as valuable as inspiration. Audiences contribute their unique perspectives to these experiences. At The Arts Centre’s opening concert this season, Fanfarai, a French North African brass and percussion ensemble, performed alongside New Orleans’s Dirty Dozen Brass Band.

I observed audience members clapping to different rhythms, bringing their individual musical instincts to the performance. Despite their distinct backgrounds, they shared in the joy of being together, forging a new collective history. Post-show conversations reveal friendships and experiences that have contributed to many individuals feeling at home in Abu Dhabi.

The International Day of the Intangible Cultural Heritage prompts us to consider our duty to the practices and knowledge communities cherish and transmit. Safeguarding and expanding these elements involves supporting individuals in practicing, teaching, performing, and contributing, recognizing that what they pass on will evolve.

The initial promise that drew me here has materialized through the works created by people and the connections they have formed. We can honor these contributions while retaining space for unforeseen discoveries that none of us could anticipate.