ABOUT
The SKOONI Arts Foundation & Residence is a creative platform established in 2023 in Dubai, dedicated to cultural exchange, artistic residencies, and cross-disciplinary collaborations.
Founded by Natalia (Nat) and Michael Morcos, the foundation nurtures dialogue between the Middle East and the wider world supporting artists, designers, and cultural thinkers who push the boundaries of creativity.
Rooted in SKOONI’s ethos of sun, feeling at peace, and experiential living, the Foundation creates opportunities for emerging and established voices to engage with new contexts, from Dubai’s dynamic cultural landscape to global art capitals. Through residencies, commissions, and curated programs, SKOONI Arts Foundation & Residence is a space where ideas travel freely, where art becomes ritual, and where creativity acts as a bridge across geographies.
HOW IT BEGAN
It started from a Tree, a beautiful tree on Al Skooni Street, whose name inspired the SKOONI Arts Foundation & Residence. That tree became the SKOONI Tree: not a symbol, but a living space that holds and gathers creatives, offering ground for art to unfold.
From that beginning, Nat and Michael Morcos shaped a cultural temple where artists working in music, dance, theatre, performance art, spoken word, poetry, cinema, fashion, design, and craft convene under a single canopy.
The SKOONI Tree continues to hold this space today; rooted in origin, reaching into the future, and always a place for creativity in communion.
ARTISTS IN RESIDENCE
Amelia Alice Howe
Maruan Sipert
FEATURED
Harper’s Bazaar
Vogue Arabia
Elle Arabia
Monocle
Architectural Digest
Emirates Woman
DUBAI
Nat and Michael Morcos discovered SKOONI in the heart of Dubai’s Jumeirah; a place that reflects the very beginnings of the city. Here, Dubai’s story is felt most vividly: where the quiet traces of tradition meet the striking silhouettes of the modern skyline.
Nat and Michael in just five months transformed an old residential property into a work of contemporary architecture - an open, light-filled space for performance, cultural exchange, and artist residencies.
Dubai is home for Nat and Michael for more than two decades and one of the world’s most dynamic cultural crossroads. A fast-developing hub, it draws people from every continent to live, create, and exchange. Its energy is defined by movement and reinvention, yet remains anchored by its heritage; a city where history and vision coexist, and where the future of culture is constantly being written.