Art is in motion. Things are moving at the Manarat Al Sadiyat on Abu Dhabi’s Sadiyat Island as artists, enthusiasts and collectors from the world over gather for the 2011 edition of Abu Dhabi Art, being held from the 16-19th November, 2011.

And where there’s culture, chances are the ArtBus will be around, with its usual remit of transporting culture enthusiasts from city to city and art gallery to cul de sac. Supported by the Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC), the ArtBus will take passengers on a comprehensive tour of Abu Dhabi’s arts scene before dropping them at the fair.

But this year, the ArtBus to Abu Dhabi is getting an artistic makeover courtesy Abu Dhabi Art’s ‘Wings’ project. The initiative, launched last year, and asks emerging Emirati artists and designers to reinterpret the Abu Dhabi Art ‘Wing’ logo in their own style. And the ArtBus has become a rolling canvas, showcasing one-off designs from artists including May Al Badi, Aljoud Lootah, Kholoud Sharafi and Dana Saif Al Mazrouei

May Al Badi’s Wings design borrows from elements of traditional Emirati handicrafts, using the wings’ form to emphasize elements and characteristics within the handicrafts.

Aljoud Lootah, a young woman who seems to have made boundless energy and optimism an art form in itself, decided to base her work on the sort of contemporary synthesis of graphics and print that is a hallmark of her startup company Niftee.

“I took inspiration from Emirati culture, and tried incorporating that into the Wings’ design. The design that was eventually chosen by TDIC was one where I’d reformulated the wings based on the UAE 50 dirham note,” she says.

One can’t help but pause. Surely pushing a 50 AED note onto the side of a bus as a pattern is a nod to commercialism too far? No, for Aljoud had other things in mind.

“The dirham notes in circulation are actually beautiful, and represent many of the UAE’s symbols. In particular, the 50 Dirham note offers a rich sense of history. It carries the ancient fort of Al Ain, and the Arabian Oryx in deep purple. It also carries the UAE’s name in Arabic. I realized that we handle currency every single day, yet often don’t get to closely observe the aesthetics of the symbols on it,” she notes.

With the AED 50 note as inspiration, Aljoud has combined patterns and symbols into the shape of Abu Dhabi Art’s Wings. The design combines the familiarity of common currency pressed into new shapes and angles.

Aljoud has long had a fascination for combining graphic design and print with more conventional art. “I started out printing designs on t-shirts for friends, who loved them. It was during an entrepreneurial course in college that I decided to start Niftee and see how the market would react.” As it turns out, the market reacted very well. Niftee’s quirky designs have quickly made headway in the UAE’s cultural community.

Khaloud Sharafi is a degree holder in Visual Communications, and has exhibited in solo and group shows in the UAE, Shanghai and London. Her artworks are also part of the permanent collection of the Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts, the Barjeel Art Foundation in Sharjah, and the British Museum in London. Kholoud’s concept for her Abu Dhabi Art Wing was to juxtapose chords and old cassette tapes, composing a playful relationship between the sound and the medium used to record it. In doing so, Kholoud Sharafi is referencing Abu Dhabi Art’s ability to channel a variety of sounds and voices, each of which is recorded or showcased within different contexts.

 Khalid Mahmood’s artistic pursuits revolve around portraiture and graphic design. His passion for illustration started as a child, and he doodled every corner of his text books. His rethink of the Wings idea was to incorporate many elements of art - photography, calligraphy and painting – into one project.

Dana Saif Al Mazrouei’s work is particularly influenced by her exposure to different cultures through extensive travel. Her work has been showcased in numerous public venues such as Burj Khalifa, Bloomingdales, Harvey Nichols, Bastakiya and the Emirates Palace. For the Abu Dhabi Art Wings project, Dana created what she calls an Abu Dhabi Art Stamp. The artwork is a recreation of the official entrance and exit airport stamp for Abu Dhabi displayed on a visa page along with a background of multiple international visas. It emphasizes the concept of Abu Dhabi Art being an international destination for the general public and also art lovers, collectors, artists and students from around the world. Her second concept is based on the traditional craft of embroidery. The wing in Dana’s interpretation represents hands merging the embroidery between men and women.

The Abu Dhabi Art Wings are prominently displayed within the fair on various facades and are available on merchandise in the artyfacts store. They are also rolling into town on the sides of the ArtBus. This year, passengers taking the ArtBus to Abu Dhabi Art will ‘Wing’ it in style.