Coffee Meets Competition: Art4you Gallery Ignites Creativity at Kefi Café

DUBAI – QAHWA WORLD

As part of the Coffee Art Marathon – Edition 2, Art4you Gallery hosted Coffee Art Ignite, a high-energy live postcard art competition at Kefi Books, Board Games & Specialty Coffee Shop in Dubai. The event, supported by Qahwa World, showcased the growing synergy between contemporary art and coffee culture.

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“Designed as a 90-minute creative challenge, Coffee Art Ignite invited artists and students to explore coffee as a sustainable artistic medium. Participants were tasked with creating as many original coffee-painted postcards as possible, turning speed, skill, and spontaneity into a compelling live performance,” said Jesno Jackson, Curator of Art4you Gallery.

  • A Unique Artistic Challenge

The competition required all participants to work exclusively with coffee as pigment. Within the 90-minute timeframe, artists produced multiple miniature artworks on postcard-sized formats. Winners were determined based on the number of completed original postcards and jury-selected works, evaluated by Prof. Dr. Mohamed Yousif, pioneer Emirati artist, sculptor, and Fine Arts professor at the University of Sharjah, UAE. VIP guests included Ali Al Zakary, Ajab Yusuf Bharbhaya, Tasneem Hussain Turabally, and Hussain Ibrahim.

Demonstrating exceptional creativity and speed, the winning artist produced 40 original coffee-painted postcards, earning the title Coffee Art Ignite Champion. Participants included both professional artists and emerging creatives, such as Cristina Gabiela, Noreen Nawab, Jesno Jackson, Fathimath Thasleema, Maiia Opuk, Alisa Volnova, Zara Bekmurzaeva, Vasilisa Eliseeva, and Sophie Bekmurzaeva, reflecting the inclusive spirit of the Coffee Art Marathon.

  • Why Coffee Art Ignite Was Curated

Art4you Gallery designed Coffee Art Ignite to:

  • Promote coffee as a sustainable and innovative art medium

  • Encourage experimental, time-based artistic expression

  • Offer interactive art experiences within community spaces

  • Strengthen connections between artists, cafés, and cultural audiences

  • Build momentum for the broader Coffee Art Marathon initiative

By hosting the event in a specialty coffee café, Kefi Café transformed into a live creative arena, blurring the line between exhibition space and social gathering. Vasilisa Eliseeva won 1st Prize in the Artist category, while Sophie Bekmurzaeva took 1st Prize in the Student category.

  • About Coffee Art Marathon

The Coffee Art Marathon (CAM2) is an international art initiative organized by Art4you Gallery under founder and Chief Curator Jesno Jackson. Running from February to April 2026 across the UAE, the marathon features 30 creative activations including live competitions, exhibitions, workshops, and community art engagements.

The initiative highlights coffee not just as a beverage, but as a conscious artistic medium, aligned with sustainability and contemporary art practices. By activating cafés, galleries, and cultural spaces, Coffee Art Marathon creates accessible platforms for artists while engaging audiences in unique art experiences.

  • Event Details
  • Event: Coffee Art Ignite – Live Postcard Art Competition

  • Venue: Kefi Books, Board Games & Specialty Coffee Shop, Dubai

  • Support Partner: Qahwa World

  • Organizer: Art4you Gallery

  • Part of: Coffee Art Marathon – Edition 2

For media inquiries, interviews, or future collaborations, contact Art4you Gallery.

Coffee Art Marathon 2026: A 7-Emirate Creative Movement in the UAE

DUBAI – QAHWA WORLD

The Coffee Art Marathon (CAM2), organised by Art4you Gallery and initiated by Jesno Jackson, returns from February to April 2026 with the “Road to Coffee Creative Challenge” across the UAE. Following the success of its 2024 edition, the initiative has now expanded to all seven Emirates, marking an important milestone in its journey of blending coffee culture with artistic expression.

  • About Coffee Art Marathon 2

As Art4you Gallery celebrates 10 years of supporting art and culture in the UAE, the Coffee Art Marathon reflects its ongoing commitment to innovation, community engagement, and sustainability. By promoting eco-friendly mediums such as coffee painting, Art4you aligns with the UAE’s vision for sustainable and creative development.

Over the past decade, the gallery has built strong platforms for both emerging and established artists, contributing to the country’s growing cultural landscape while encouraging responsible and forward-thinking art practices. The new edition officially launched with immersive art experiences, live competitions, exhibitions, workshops, and community-focused programs.

The Vision: Coffee Art Marathon explores coffee not just as a drink, but as a creative medium. By bringing together artists, students, and art enthusiasts, CAM encourages experimentation, collaboration, and sustainable artistic practices.

As an international initiative by Art4you Events, CAM2 features 30 creative events across cities, cafés, galleries, and cultural spaces, connecting artists and communities through innovative coffee-based art experiences.

Coffee Art Marathon 2026: A 7-Emirate Creative Movement in the UAE

  • DETAILS OF THE EVENTS HAPPENING:

    1. A Creative Movement Brewed with Purpose at North Stable RAK Edition with Design Gallery. The RAK Edition aims to strengthen Ras Al Khaimah’s creative ecosystem while providing emerging and established artists with an interactive platform to showcase innovation through coffee-inspired art. Earth, Equine & Espresso – Coffee Art in Nature was a curated art experience and sustainable creative activation hosted within the serene environment of a horse stable café at North Stable Café, RAK. Blending art, nature, equine culture and conscious creativity, the event explored coffee as an eco-conscious artistic medium, transforming a community space into an immersive art environment. Curated by Art4you Gallery & Design Gallery, the event is part of the CAM 2. This unique initiative, supported by Heart of RAK and North Stable, positions Ras Al Khaimah as a cultural destination for innovative art experiences, encouraging environmental awareness, alternative venue exhibitions, and experiential art formats. The highlighted artists were Cristina Gabriela, Asma Sayed, Mustafa Pracha, Perihan Marwan, Noreen Nawab, Barathi Mehansi, Vasilisa Eliseeva, Janvi Choksi, Nithin Umesh, Jesno Jackson and Anju Choksi painted the theme of Horse in the Horse stable with sustainable medium coffee. There was coffee brewing by Barista with coffee story.

    Coffee Art Marathon 2026: A 7-Emirate Creative Movement in the UAE

  • 2. Coffee Art Ignite – Live Postcard Art Competition A key highlight of the program was Coffee Art Ignite, an electrifying live postcard art competition. Designed as a one-hour speed challenge, participating artists compete to create the maximum number of coffee-painted postcards within 60 minutes. Blending skill, speed, and spontaneity, Coffee Art Ignite transformed coffee into pigment and pressure into performance. The artist produced the highest number of original postcards (40 postcards) within the time limit will be crowned the winner, celebrating creativity under real-time artistic intensity. This live competition embodied the spirit of Coffee Art Marathon, experimental, engaging, and community-driven at Kefi Books and Café, Dubai supported by Qahwa World.

    Coffee Art Marathon 2026: A 7-Emirate Creative Movement in the UAE

  • 3. The Coffee Mark Art Exhibition launched in Dubai at Qube Art Gallery. The Dubai Edition officially opened with a curated launch event accompanied by the The Coffee Mark Art Exhibition. This exhibition explored “The Coffee Mark” as a symbol of traces, tones, and transformations, capturing the organic textures, stains, and narratives formed through coffee as an artistic medium. The exhibition showcased selected artists whose works reflected sustainability, innovation, and contemporary interpretation of coffee-based art practices.

    The grand opening of THE COFFEE MARK | Traces, Tones & Transformations – Unique Coffee Painting Art Exhibition, by Art4you Gallery at Qube Art Gallery, Al Quoz, welcomed distinguished guests, artists, collectors, media representatives, and art enthusiasts, by the presence of distinguished Chief guest – H.E Yaqoob Al Ali, Guest of Honors – Hanan Al Nuaimi, Ahmed Mahmood, Special VIP Guests – Bhumika Maniyar, Pamila Quinzi, Tariq Al Salmaan, Nadine Ellithy, Aarti Basanth , Mylene De Los Ama, from the art and cultural community, whose support reinforced the growing recognition of coffee as a contemporary fine art medium.

    Coffee Art Marathon 2026: A 7-Emirate Creative Movement in the UAE

  • The exhibition dedicated to only coffee paintings featured 26 professional artists from 12 nationalities and from all 7 emirates, showcased over 54 original coffee artworks, demonstrating the extraordinary versatility of coffee as pigment. The exhibition proudly featured the works of participating artists – Anastasiia Novokreshchenova, Nataliia Venerova, Vasilisa Eliseeva, Jesno Jackson, Dr. Ana S. Gad, Shaf Beypore, Noreen Nawab, Sophie Bekmurzaeva, Ljiljana Stjelja, Abdul Jabbar Weiss, Barathi Mehansi, Ricknibert Balingan, Aliyeh Mohammad, Nithin Umesh, Shelina Khimji, Aimee George, Cristina Gabriela, Melanie Grace Francis, Perihan Marwan, Thomas Antony, Svetlana Kreventsova, Neethu George, Maryam Samsonova, Jeff Canare, Pradeep Kumar and Maria Komal Abie, whose diverse styles and interpretations brought depth to the Coffee Art movement, creating a collective dialogue around sustainability and innovation.

    Program Duration: February – April

    From 25th February through April 2026, the Coffee Art Marathon Edition 2 will feature:

    • Live art activations

    • Coffee art workshops

    • Artist showcases

    • Community engagement programs

    • Collaborative creative sessions

    • Exhibition displays

    This extended format ensures continuous audience interaction and sustained creative momentum over three months. Follow Instagram – Art4you Gallery, Coffee Art Marathon www.art4yougallery.com for future events.