Radial Histories, a six-part audio miniseries produced by Sharjah Art Foundation, weaves together oral histories, archival sound and scholarly commentary to narrate untold stories about visual art in Sharjah and the wider UAE from the early 1960s to the early 1990s, just before the inception of the Sharjah Biennial. 

Before the international acclaim of the Sharjah Biennial and the UAE’s contemporary art boom, there were decades of experimentation, exchange and cultural formation. In this opening episode, host May Alqaydi is joined by researchers Kamayani Sharma and Hasan Hujairi to introduce the concept, methodology and unexpected moments behind the series. Together, they unpack how this documentary, which frames memory as a form of knowledge, traces the emergence of the UAE’s art scene before globalisation reshaped the art world.

Credits

Host: May Alqaydi

Guests: Hasan Hujairi and Kamayani Sharma

Music and Sound:

Fairuz, singer. ‘Ghanneit Makka [I sang for Mecca]’, 1956. Transmissions from the Eastern Mediterranean (RIAFC 019). Radio is a Foreign Country. 

Watson, Paul, contributor. ‘Shortwave Broadcast Compilation – Africa and Middle East: Circa 1980s’. Shortwave Radio Audio Archive. 

Greenall, Dan, contributor. ‘PTT Voice Mirrors (Part 1): Circa 1970's’. Shortwave Radio Audio Archive. 

Irmler, Gert, contributor. ‘Voice of the People (Aleppo, Syria): October 14, 1978’. Shortwave Radio Audio Archive.

Gavaras, Tom, contributor. ‘Radio Moscow (Moscow Mailbag with Joe Adamov): 1978’. Shortwave Radio Audio Archive. 

Holder, Ian, contributor. ‘All India Radio: Circa 1971’. Shortwave Radio Audio Archive. 

Herterich, Lee, contributor. ‘Radio Baghdad: September 26, 1990’. Shortwave Radio Audio Archive.

Gavaras, Tom, contributor. ‘Radio Kuwait (start of Iraqi invasion): August 2, 1990’. Shortwave Radio Audio Archive

Alistair Cooke and Music Now, BBC. ‘1979 Summer Shortwave Broadcasts’. Loren and Roger Cox Radio Recordings. Digital Library of Amateur Radio & Communications. Internet Archive. 

Nelson, Scott, contributor. ‘Radio Moscow: January 08, 1987’. Shortwave Radio Audio Archive. 

Watson, Paul, contributor. ‘Shortwave Broadcast Compilation – Eastern Europe & USSR: Circa 1980s’. Shortwave Radio Audio Archive. 

Editorial and Content Support: Kate Sutton, Kathleen Butti, Natalia Ulloa, Rajwant Sandhu and Rosalyn D’Mello

Research Associate: May Rashed

 

Sound Engineer and Designer: Riya Raagini 

Podcast Producer and Writer: Kamayani Sharma 

Executive Producer and Writer: Jyoti Dhar

Special Thanks: Hoor Al Qasimi, Nawar Al Qasimi, Dima Bittard, Hasan Hujairi, Alyazeyah Al Marri, Mahshid Rafiei, Ghaith Khoury, Salwa Mikdadi, Sheikh Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi, Abdullah Al Saadi, Talal Moualla, Nasir Nasrallah, Abdelaziz Mohamed AlMulla, Yalda Bidshahri, Joseph De la Cerna, Unnikrishnan Suresh Babu, Magdi Emad, Ismail Al-Rifai, Ziad Abdullah, Abdullah Hussein, Mohamad Al Saadei, Jiwon Lee, Tima Ouzden, Noora Al Mualla, Ahmad Makia, Heba Hosny and Jawed Ali Mohammed

This episode was recorded on 6 April 2026.

© Sharjah Art Foundation, 2026