ArabWeeks

Lichtenstein. Warhol. Koons. Stella. Calder. Rauschenberg. Holzer. Elíasson. Since a BMW 3.0 CSL painted by Alexander Calder lined up for the Le Mans 24-hour race exactly 40 years ago, the BMW Art Car Collection has fascinated both art and design enthusiasts as well as car and technology fans all around the world.

Ever since the invention of the motor car, artists have drawn inspiration from the thrill of speed, from the phenomenon of mobility and from racing cars as examples of modern sculpture. Since 1975, BMW Art Cars have been a central feature of this story. The idea behind the BMW Art Cars was the brainchild of French racing driver and art enthusiast Hervé Poulain: 40 years ago, Poulain asked artist friend Alexander Calder to apply his creative talents to his race car. Together with Jochen Neerpasch, then BMW Motorsport Director, the first BMW Art Car was born – and it became an instant crowd’s favourite on the race track. Since then, new additions to the BMW Art Car Collection have been made over the years at irregular intervals, with unique works of art from artists such as Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, David Hockney and Jeff Koons.

“The BMW Art Cars provide an exciting landmark at the interface where cars, technology, design, art and motor sport meet,” reflects Maximilian Schöberl, Senior Vice President, Corporate and Governmental Affairs, BMW Group. “The 40-year history of our ‘rolling sculptures’ is as unique as the artists who created them. The BMW Art Cars are an essential element and core characteristic of our global cultural engagement.”

The anniversary celebrations got under way with exhibitions in Hong Kong, at the Centre Pompidou, the BMW Museum and the Concorso d’Eleganza at Lake Como, where the first four BMW Art Cars by Alexander Calder, Frank Stella, Roy Lichtenstein and Andy Warhol, plus the M3 GT2 created by Jeff Koons, were all on display. Further presentations are set to follow later in 2015 in New York, Miami and Shanghai.

Various image material of the BMW Art Cars can be accessed and downloaded via the global BMW PressClub:

https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/global/photoTeaserList.html?left_menu_item=node__9537

For video footage please refer to the link below: https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/global/tvFootageTeaserList.html?left_menu_item=node__9537

The group of seventeen artists who have designed BMW models so far since 1975 is very international, and interest in the “rolling sculptures” has spread all around the world. Several cars are usually on display at the BMW Museum in Munich, the home of the BMW Art Cars, as part of its permanent collection. The remaining BMW Art Cars are travelling the globe – to art fairs in Los Angeles, London and Hong Kong, as well as exhibitions at the Louvre, the Guggenheim and the Museum of Contemporary Art Shanghai.

To date, many of the BMW Art Cars have not only turned heads in museums, but have also – in their earlier life – done so on the race track: Alexander Calder (BMW 3.0 CSL, 1975), Frank Stella (BMW 3.0 CSL, 1976), Roy Lichtenstein (BMW 320 Group 5, 1977), Andy Warhol (BMW M1 Group 4, 1979), Ernst Fuchs (BMW 635CSi, 1982), Robert Rauschenberg (BMW 635CSi, 1986), Michael Jagamara Nelson (BMW M3 Group A, 1989), Ken Done (BMW M3 Group A, 1989), Matazo Kayama (BMW 535i, 1990), César Manrique (BMW 730i, 1990), A. R. Penck (BMW Z1, 1991), Esther Mahlangu (BMW 525i, 1991), Sandro Chia (BMW M3 GTR, 1992), David Hockney (BMW 850CSi, 1995), Jenny Holzer (BMW V12 LMR, 1999), Ólafur Elíasson (BMW H2R, 2007) and Jeff Koons (BMW M3 GT2, 2010).

The BMW Group would also like to introduce the 40th anniversary of the BMW Art Car Collection into the public sphere through social media. While exploring the vision of each artist for their car on its social media channels, the company also wants to ask people what the ‘art of the car’ means to them. To track the content, it will be shared under the hashtag #BMWArtCar.

In 2014, Hatje Cantz published the first comprehensive publication on the BMW Art Cars. The 200-page book is richly illustrated and reviews the history of this extraordinary collection of cars from its beginnings in 1975. It uses portraits and interviews to shed more light on the various artists’ themes and approaches.

Further information on the BMW Art Cars publication can be found here:

http://www.hatjecantz.de/bmw-art-cars-5319-1.html-Ends-

Air Arabia has been named “Best Low-Cost Carrier” at the World Tourism Forum Awards in Istanbul, Turkey. The World Tourism Forum is an annual gathering of leading business figures and industry experts to discuss the future direction of the global tourism sector. Among the topics discussed were online tourism, destination marketing and the economic benefits of tourism.

Air Arabia took home the award for “Best Low-Cost Carrier” based on its performance over the last year, which has included the opening of two new international hubs in Ras Al Khaimah, UAE, and Amman, Jordan, and increasing its global network to 104 destinations.

The airline also reached another major milestone during the period when it became first low-cost carrier from the Middle East and Africa to enter the Chinese market with the start of regular non-stop services to Urumqi, the largest city in Western China.

Adel A. Ali, Group Chief Executive Officer of Air Arabia, said: “It is a source of great pride for everyone at Air Arabia that our contribution to the aviation sector continues to be recognised, not only within the Middle East and North Africa, but also by our peers around the world. We thank the organisers of the World Tourism Forum for this accolade and we would like to express our gratitude to the millions of loyal customers who have enabled our success for more than a decade.”

This is the latest in a series of recent accolades won by Air Arabia including “Low Cost Carrier of the Year” from Aviation Business, “Middle East’s Leading Low-Cost Airline 2014” at the 21st World Travel Awards, and the “Airline Business Award” at the Airline Strategy Awards 2014.

Taiwan is a delightful holiday destination and a green island country that offers vast and diversified natural landscape and cultures for a great travel experience. Apart from having a well-earned reputation of being a world leader in producing precision high tech commodities, Taiwan was also the first to have the world’s tallest building.

Taipei 101, is currently the third tallest building in the world and is situated in business district of Taipei which is a great world metropolis, apart from being a superb shopping destination and Asia’s best foodies paradise. 

In the sixteenth century, when Portuguese sailors landed on the island, they were clearly impressed by its natural beauty and named it Ilha Formosa – or Island Beautiful. Taiwan is also one of world’s most mountainous country as it possess natural beauty of 250 or more 3000 meters above sea level jade green mountains together with stunning coastal scenery. Taiwan is a beautiful island that is blessed with an abundance of native flora and fauna including some rare Taiwan orchids. Taiwan provides modern infrastructure that allows you to travel up high above 3000 meters to the mountain, and travel low down to the tropical beach within three hours. Along with the beautiful landscape, Taiwan is also blessed with rich cultural heritage that making it a perfect family holiday destination.

Taiwan people are very hospitable and friendly; and it is a country where all ethical religions are practised and respected, by its multi-racial background people who have lived in harmony in Taiwan. It has recently been rated by MasterCard-Crescent Rating Global Muslim Travel Index 2015 as the world’s top 10th country that has facility in place to meet the demand for Muslim travellers and is striving to continuously make improvements. Taiwan is also ranked by all world standards as one of Asia’s most safe countries to travel around.

The Taiwan Tourism Bureau participated in Middle East’s premier travel exhibition, Arabian Travel Mart (ATM) that is held annually in Dubai; with a display that stretched over four days with beautiful orchids and high mountain Taiwan tea as the theme of the Taiwan stand that were flown in specially for the exhibition. Visitors thronged to the Taiwan stand and sampled a number of flavored teas, certified Halal pineapple cakes that are typical of Taiwan; sticky rice cake (Muagi) that is a popular tea snack; enjoyed watching the Tea Ceremony and learnt how to make that perfect cup of tea; and discovered why Taiwan is known as the Kingdom of Butterfly Orchid. Especially flown down from Taiwan for ATM was the classical musician Zither who collaborated to the soothing atmosphere.

Also, in an effort to strengthen its relationship with the travel trade industry in the region and to singularly reach out to the travel agents, consolidators, media and the DMC community in the Middle East; TTB held a series of workshops across the region — the cities where the workshops were conducted include Muscat, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Al Khobar.

The delegation comprised of senior members from various organizations: Taiwan Tourism Bureau’s Singapore Office, Golden Foundation Tours, Edison Travel Service, Happy Go Travel, Pro Tour and Big 5 Tours;conducted B2B sessions and interacted with agents in each city.

The event kicked off with B2B sessions followed by the opening ceremony that was marked by a soothing Zither performance, for which an award winning performer was specially flown down.

“I am confident that the Middle East will emerge as a top source market for Taiwan, as it offers culture, food, shopping, nightlife all in a safe environment that makes it an ideal holiday destination for the traveller from the region. As we continue to reach out to the trade and consumers alike through various activities such as outdoor advertising and branding, ads in the mainline newspapers, trade and media FAM trips etc, we will see positive growth in numbers,” saidMr. Liu Hsi-Lin, Deputy Director-General of Taiwan Tourism Bureau.

The 11th German breakfast and Catalogue Show 2015 in Riyadh, organized by the German Saudi Arabian Liaison Office for Economic Affairs (GESALO), was a huge success. During the show more than 20 German exhibiting companies representing construction, engineering, fashion & lifestyle, communication, environment, chemical, infrastructure, industries, medical, petrochemical, recycling, security technology, water, waste water, consulting and food presented their products. Hundreds of businessmen attended this event. It was a well-established opportunity to get together to share experiences and to deepen existing relations.

The opening ceremony was held by the Delegate of German Industry and Commerce for Saudi-Arabia, Bahrain and Yemen, Mr. Andreas Hergenroether and Assist. S. General for Economic Affairs of Saudi Chambers, H.E. Mr. Ahmed Al-Sowailem. “Today’s catalogue show is not just a presentation of German products and service but also a proof of the long lasting and sustainable business relations of our two countries,” Mr. Hergenroether said. “The German economy is not only an important trade partner for Saudi Arabia, but equally an important technology and Know How supplier for the Saudi businesses,” he added.

The German Breakfast and Catalogue Show, organized by the German Saudi-Arabian Liaison Office for Economic Affairs has been a huge success for the last 10 years. Since 2004 GESALO is successfully hosting this exclusive event for business guests covering various industries and also the public sector. The show is a major platform for German as well as Saudi business people, CEOs and VIPs to get together to share ideas and visions for the future. It offers an outstanding opportunity for German companies to get in touch with the Saudi market. The Catalogue Show creates and deepens relations between German companies seeking to enter the Saudi market, and Saudi companies looking for new and innovative products and partners. It was the 4th event this month after the catalogue show took place in Manama, Jubail and Dammam. The event is supported by the Platinum Sponsors Henkel, Lufthansa, MAN and Automotive Sponsor Volkswagen.

After the first full year of operation under its revival plan in the Kingdom, Nissan achieved its position as the fastest-growing automotive brand for the second consecutive year.

Nissan, with its Kingdom-wide dealer Alissa Auto, reached the third position in sales with 61,806 units, reaching 7.2% market share and representing 141.7% growth year-on-year compared to 2013. Furthermore, Nissan’s brand purchase consideration has strengthened by 27% reaching the second position in the market.

In the Middle East, Nissan sold a record breaking 219,129 units in the 2014 financial year – up 3.3% on 2013. In the GCC specifically, Nissan recorded an 18.1% sales increase with 185,135 units sold in 2014 versus 156,778 in 2013— increasing its market share to 10.3%.

Samir Cherfan, Managing Director of Nissan Middle East and Nissan Saudi Arabia, said: “I would like to express my sincere appreciation to our local distributor, Alissa Auto, for a great year, where we were able to achieve our number three position in the sales charts. Under the Power 88 Mid Term plan, we announced that we intend to increase our sales in the kingdom to one hundred thousand units by 2016.”

“To achieve this goal, we have two areas that we will be focusing on. The first is leveraging our strong renewal of the line-up pillars that we have already been doing over the past two years. The second area is focusing on customer satisfaction through high density of network coverage and service availability, and through excellence in sales and service quality at competitive price”. Cherfan added.

Sheikh Najeeb Al Aissa, Chairman and Managing Director of Alissa Auto, said: “At Alissa Auto, we are continuously working to meet our customers’ needs and provide them with excellent services through our state-of-the-art branches. In addition to offering a full range of Nissan vehicles, providing our customers with a wide selection and being heavily present at close proximity to our customers, our prompt and high-quality service has had a direct effect on increasing sales.”

In after sales with a clear strategy to establish itself as a leader in customer service in the region, Nissan announced it will continue to position its regular maintenance costs below competition and will expand its line–up with genuine products such as engine oil, batteries and affordable parts for vehicles more than three years old.

Delivering on its after-sales promise, Nissan achieved record results in sales and service customer satisfaction reaching the top group level in the Gulf, and number one in three of the GCC countries. After one year of operation, Nissan has already entered the top four group in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The Nissan line-up has performed extremely well in the Kingdom across the spectrum but sales of the Nissan Patrol, dubbed the ‘Hero of all Terrains in Life’, the Nissan Sunny, the Nissan Pathfinder and the Nissan Pick-up range have all been exceptional

Unsurprisingly, the ever-popular Nissan Patrol notched record numbers over the period with 6,913 units leaving the Kingdom’s showroom floors, a 260% hike on financial year 2013.

The Nissan Sunny also attributed to the record breaking results, by achieving 12,782 units in 2014 with 109% sales growth from last year.

Nissan Pathfinder recorded 240% growth with 2,205 units, and the Nissan Pick-up range recorded a significant growth increase of 148% versus 2013 with 29,627 units.

In addition, Nissan achieved the best ever customer satisfaction results through top-level quality customer service.

“Nissan’s strategy for success is based on the well-known Nissan global growth strategy ‘Power 88’, which CEO Carlos Ghosn announced Nissan would achieve by 2016. Under the Power 88 Mid Term plan, we announced that we intend to increase our sales in the kingdom to one hundred thousand units by 2016, wherein our recent record-breaking sales stand as a testament to the success of Nissan’s global growth strategy, ‘Power 88’” Cherfan added.

Under the Power 88 Mid Term plan, Nissan Middle east is targeting to sell over 300K units by FY16 and reach 10% Market Share in the whole region and 14.5% Market Share in the GCC.

The 2014 period was not only successful for Nissan in terms of sales, but also in terms of awards as the Japanese automaker received 15 highly-regarded international and regional accolades, positioning Nissan as the most awarded automotive brand in the MENA region for the third consecutive year.

The prestigious event of World Travel Awards has taken its 22nd annual celebration in Dubai to acknowledge and reward the excellence of global travel and tourism organizations, from which Burj Rafal Hotel Kempinski has been voted and granted the award of “Middle East’s Leading New Hotel in 2015” for its exceptional commitment to providing excellent 5 star service standards and demonstrating higher horizons of luxury.
Burj Rafal Hotel Kempinski has started welcoming its guests since March 2014. It is situated in the first twenty three floors of the highest residential tower to date, Rafal Tower, in the heart of Riyadh. The hotel is comprised of 349 rooms & suites of impeccable comfort and luxury, 5 culinary restaurants & lounges of multiple authentic cuisines, classic European spa with separate outdoor swimming pools for ladies & gentlemen, and an elite shopping boulevard.