The overwhelming response to the launch of the #MyDubai initiative during its first week has led to the creation of an online museum which will showcase the lives of the Emirate’s residents and visitors through images, videos and stories. The #MyDubai e-Museum will be housed on @MyDubai – the official Instagram and Twitter pages for the initiative – and was launched today with a selection of 25 images drawn from the 75,000 already submitted and showing the diversity of life in the Emirate.
#MyDubai was announced on 5th January by HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, with a request on his instagram and twitter accounts for residents and visitors to join him in creating “the world’s first autobiography of a city” by sharing compelling moments of their lives during 2014 by using the hashtag #MyDubai. The request has resulted in more than 75,000 photo and video submissions on Instagram following HH Sheikh Hamdan’s request to demonstrate the unique identity and true culture of the city that lie beneath the urban and technological advancements for which it is known. The first week of #MyDubai also resulted in more than 27,000 Twitter mentions, and 198 million Twitter impressions.
The #MyDubai e-Museum is the first of a number of projects which will combine to create the multi-media autobiography and will be managed by the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM). Every week throughout the year 10 images submitted on the #MyDubai hashtag will be selected to join the museum’s ‘collection’ and shown on www.instagram.com/mydubai while www.twitter.com/mydubai will exhibit a selection of articles, stories, images and videos.
Announcing the #MyDubai e-Museum, H.E Helal Saeed Almarri, Director General of Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, said: “The response from residents and visitors during the first week of #MyDubai has been remarkable, both in terms of the number of submissions and the quality of photography. The submissions have shown the passion that people have for our Emirate and the very different ways people experience the city through the lives they lead. By launching the #MyDubai Twitter and Instagram pages, we will create an online museum that displays the best of the wide range of submissions and creates a permanent exhibition which residents and visitors have the opportunity to contribute to.
“DTCM is working with a number of partner organisations and governmental departments on other #MyDubai projects which will harness the creativity within the Emirate and provide further channels through which to tell the stories of residents and visitors. Together with the photos, videos and stories we receive via the hashtag #MyDubai, these projects will combine to create the world’s first autobiography of a city, told through a broad range of media and channels.”
