DIFC’s New Sculpture Turns Empty Space into Youth Opportunity

Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and Dubai Cares have added a new permanent marker to the city’s art map: The Space in Between. The sculpture is more than a photo stop at DIFC’s Sculpture Park. It anchors the Sculpting Futures initiative, which has raised AED 1 million to support youth skills and future-of-work programmes around the world.  

What is ‘The Space in Between’ at DIFC?

The new sculpture sits inside DIFC Sculpture Park and is designed as a physical reminder of what happens when young people get real chances to learn and lead.

• Site-specific installation at DIFC Sculpture Park
• Created by UAE-based duo Sawsan and Bahar Al Bahar
• Commissioned under DIFC’s Sculpting Futures initiative with Dubai Cares
• Crafted from concrete, resin, earth, steel and other materials
• Weighs around 2,000 kg and carved from a solid block  

The work is built as a solid mass with a carved-out void in the middle. That “space in between” is intentional. It represents the invisible potential, curiosity, and skills sitting inside every young person before they get access to education and support.

The layered interior hints at how deep that potential goes, and how structured programmes can shape it over time. Positioned in DIFC, the piece also ties youth conversations directly to a global financial hub, instead of leaving them in classrooms or conference halls. 

Sculpting Futures: AED 1 Million for Youth Skills

The sculpture is the public face of Sculpting Futures, a joint initiative between DIFC and Dubai Cares focused on youth empowerment.

• AED 1,000,000 raised with support from the DIFC corporate community
• Funds go to Dubai Cares programmes that build “future-ready” skills
• Focus areas include emerging sectors, sustainable solutions and community projects
• Youth are supported to influence policy and lead local change
• Initiative looks at long-term systems and partnerships, not one-off campaigns  

Dubai Cares has already invested over AED 38.5 million (USD 10.5 million) in youth empowerment programmes globally, across education, employment and community leadership. Sculpting Futures adds a Dubai-based funding channel on top of that, with companies inside DIFC backing the mission.

Talent development is not just about jobs; the programmes aim to help young people lead community projects and take part in policy discussions as well. For readers tracking skills and upskilling in the UAE, this sits in the same broad space as wider initiatives around digital and creative skills, which we’ve covered in pieces like Dubai Culture’s School of Life programme at public libraries.

Corporate Backers Carved Into the Art

Rather than hiding donor names in a press release, DIFC and Dubai Cares have baked them into the sculpture itself.

• Names of contributing entities are physically integrated into the installation
• Supporters include law firms, hospitality groups, finance firms and galleries
• Backers range from Al Tamimi & Co. and Musafir.com to Fundamental Hospitality and Perpétuel Gallery
• The piece becomes a permanent record of shared responsibility
• Sits in a high-footfall area, keeping the conversation public  

By embedding the list of backers into the artwork, the project makes corporate support visible and permanent. It’s a nudge to the wider DIFC community: this is what collective impact looks like when it moves beyond CSR reports.

Visitors passing through the park see the piece, the names and, ideally, the link to youth pathways that go far beyond the Gate District. It also connects nicely with Dubai’s growing culture of public art and design – from digital exhibitions around Burj Rashid to wider creative initiatives across Alserkal Avenue.

The Artists Behind the Void

The Space in Between comes from UAE-based artists and architects Sawsan and Bahar Al Bahar, represented by Firetti Contemporary in Alserkal Avenue.  

• Duo are graduates of the American University of Sharjah
• Work spans art, architecture, craft and digital fabrication
• Previous exhibitions include Louvre Abu Dhabi, MENART Paris and Abu Dhabi Art
• Their work Waterdust was shortlisted for the Richard Mille Art Prize in 2023
• Practice blends personal narratives, home, craft and digital methods  

Their approach is very much about structure meeting story. In this case, the void is not meant as emptiness; it stands for possibility. The pair talk about how education and opportunity can “carve” through rigid structures and open new paths.

With Bahar’s focus on digital fabrication through his Robocraft studio and Sawsan’s focus on home and memory, the result is a piece that feels both engineered and emotional. For Dubai’s art fans, it also continues a run of serious contemporary work by UAE-based artists taking over public spaces, not just gallery walls.

Why This Sculpture Matters for Dubai’s Art and Youth Agenda

For DIFC, this is about more than a single artwork. It ties together finance, philanthropy and public art in one place.

• Reinforces DIFC’s ongoing Sculpture Park as a key arts and culture stop
• Supports Dubai’s positioning as an “open-air art gallery” and global arts destination
• Connects financial firms directly to youth empowerment funding
• Uses physical art to keep future-of-work conversations visible
• Aligns with Dubai Cares’ role in delivering SDG 4 on quality education  

Dubai has been pushing culture and creativity as core parts of its story, not just add-ons to tourism. Public works like The Space in Between help make that real. Instead of running a closed-door fundraising dinner, DIFC and Dubai Cares have placed the outcome in a space you can walk through, photograph and talk about.

If you’re already into the city’s art and culture scene – from Al Quoz’s creative forums to large-scale festivals like ISEA and other art-tech events we’ve covered – this is another sign that the art conversation is moving closer to how we think about work, skills and opportunity in the region.  

For more on the organisations behind the project, you can dig into their work directly on Dubai Cares’ official siteand DIFC’s homepage

FAQs: DIFC x Dubai Cares ‘The Space in Between’

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