Sharjah: A UAE Museum Partnership
Though Sharjah is not as familiar to visitors of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as Dubai or Abu Dhabi, with their international art fairs and cutting-edge art galleries, it nevertheless has an impressive history of museum traditions and development. This paper focuses on Sharjah and considers why and how the Sharjah Museums Department (SMD), a partnership of 16 diverse museums and cultural locations was created in 2006. The SMD, now the Sharjah Museums Authority (SMA) occupies a vital place in Sharjah’s civic make-up, leading local initiatives and promoting learning within the emirate.
