Revue culturelle N°41

Published on May 10 by La Croisée des Chemins, Zakya Daoud's new essay is presented at the Villa des Arts in Rabat on June 14. The book tells the story of Muslims in Spain, from year 711 to today.

Excerpt from the back cover: "This story, both near and far, is intended to make us think about the dangers of the present day. A modest contribution to the times, a reminder that all civilisations are mortal, that the rejection of the other leads to nothingness."

Zakya Daoud is a writer and journalist for "Jeune Afrique" and "Le Monde Diplomatique". She was the editor-in-chief of the magazine "Lamalif" (from 1966 to 1988). She is the author of numerous historical essays - "The Moroccan diaspora in Europe" (2011) -, and essays on women's issues or emigration - "The Strait of Gibraltar". She has also published biographies (Abdelkrim Khattabi, Hannibal, Abdallah Ibrahim, etc.).

Africa is the flagship continent of this 5th edition, with unique pieces from 15 African countries including Morocco and Tunisia.

For this first official participation in the Biennial, Morocco highlights eight exceptional designers who revisit ancestral know-how and explore new crafting methods. The collection presented begins at the "Banquet" - an international exhibition introducing traditional craftsmanship of different countries - and continues through a collective stand bridging yesterday's Moroccan crafts to today's ones.

The artisans :

• Soumiya Jalal, specialized in weaving ;
• Younès Serghini, pottery artist;
• Soufiane Zarib, Berber carpets;
• Hamza Kadiri, cabinetmaker;
• Jamil Bennani, sculptures and art furniture
• Maison Meftah, brassware;
• Ghislane Sahli, textile work;
• Salima Chaoui and Kanza Ben Cherif, engravings.

Photo: weaving by Soumiya Jalal / Copyrights: Révélations - Grand Palais.

Representing the Middle East for the first time at the Biennial, UAE "House of Artisans" unveils pieces by well-known artists and others by emerging talents.

For this first participation, the UAE space pays tribute to the country's natural environment and its raw materials through the art of emerging designers and famous artists from the region. The exhibited art pieces are inspired by the four main UAE landscapes: the desert, the oases, the coast and the mountains.

Ayisha Hassan Khansaheb, curator of the exhibition: "House of Artisans presents a selection of pieces inspired by traditional craft techniques such as Al Sadu weaving, or the use of goat and camel hair to build tents, the Khoos technique, Talli embroidery, ceramics, ..."

The artisans :

• Jawaher Al Khayyal, interior designer
• Ayesha Hadhir, contemporary artist
• Shaikha Al Ali, designer, founder of Gasah Studio
• Abdalla Al Mulla, ceramist
• Mohammed Al Suwaidi, founder of ASATEER, a company specialising in the manufacture of accessories made of mother-of-pearl and natural raw materials
• Azza Alsharif, designer
• Ghaya Bin Mesmar, graphic designer.

Photo: creations of Jawaher Al Khayyal / Copyrights Instagram account @jawaher.alkhayyal

This 27th edition of the festival focuses on the relationship between cinema and digital technology:

• The programme includes two cross-conferences: "Cinema in the digital age: medium, art and critical discourse" with the participation of the Spanish filmmaker Neus Ballus, the Italian critic Occitane Lacurie and the Moroccan critics Mohamed Bakrim and Said Mezouari.
• "The film heritage in the digital age between memory and oblivion" with French director Léa Morin, Moroccan director Narjiss Nejjar, Palestinian researcher Khadijeh Al-Habesheh, former director of the Toulouse Film Library, Franck Loiret, Tunisian director Mohamed Challouf and Lebanese film researcher Naja Al Achkar.

In addition, the following activities are also planned:

• a retrospective exhibition on the festival's highlights
• the presentation of two books on cinema: "Knowledge of the image" by film critic and thinker Mohamed Noureddine Affaya, and "Fragments of a cinematographic memory" by Saâd Chraïbi.

Arab feature films in competition:

• "Abu Seddam" by Nadine Khan (Egypt)
• "Algharib" by Ameer Fakher Eddine (Syria, Germany, Palestine, Qatar)
• "The Sea Ahead" by Ely Dagher (France, Lebanon, Belgium, USA, Qatar)
• "Habiba" by Hassan Benjelloun (Morocco)
• « Gadeha, Une seconde vie » d’Anis Lassoued (Tunisie)
• "The World After Us" by Louda Ben Salah (Tunisia)
• "Salon Huda" by Hany Abu-Assad (Palestine, Egypt, Netherlands, Qatar).

Arab documentaries in competition:

• "Beirut: Eye of the Storm" by Mai Masri (Palestine)
• "Islands" by Ali Essafi (Morocco)
• "Captains of Za'atari" by Ali Al Arabi (Egypt)
• "Summer Pack" by Salem Ballal (Morocco)
• "Postcard" by Asmaa El Moudir (Morocco).

Since 1998, the Gnawa and World Music Festival promotes Gnawa art and its values of tolerance and openness. After two-year of pandemic, the festival is back with 12 concerts in Essaouira, 9 in Casablanca, 5 in Rabat and 5 in Marrakech. More than 100 artists participate in the event with a rich palette of instruments: kora, balafon, flute, accordion, saxophone, ribab, guitar, percussion, keyboard and drums.

Starting first in Essaouira, the festivities will continue in Marrakech at the Megarama and at the Center of Stars in Jamaa El Fna on 9 and 10 June.

The program:

• two Moroccan tagnaouite legends, Abdelkebir Merchane and Mustapha Baqbou
• the Franco-Moroccan musician and singer Hindi Zahra
• the Haitian saxophonist Jowee Omicil
• the Senegalese Cheikh Diallo with his kora and keyboard
• Yaya Ouattara, percussionist from Burkina Faso
• the Senegalese guitarist Hervé Samb
• Algerian drummer Karim Ziad
• the Moroccan maâlem Mohamed Kouyou
• Moroccan Gnaoua master Abderrazak El Hadir.

The next step of the Gnawaa Festival Tour is Casablanca, at the Mohammed V Stadium and the Uzine, on June 16, 17 and 19. It will end in Rabat, at the Mohammed V National Theatre and La Renaissance, on June 23 and 24. More information on www.festival-gnaoua.net

Photo © Today Morocco

The sale features nearly fifty-two art pieces, including major pieces by artists Farid Belkahia, Mohamed Melehi, Farid Belkahia and Mohammed Kacimi; but also André ElBaz, Ahmed Cherkaoui, Miloud Labied, Jacques Azéma, Charles Hossein Zenderoudi, Bernard Buffet, Edouard-Marcel Sandoz and Dia Azzawi.

Hicham Daoudi, founding president of the Company: "The selection of works will allow us to better understand the artistic bridges that brought together the modern adventures of the Maghreb and the Mashreq in the mid-1970s, but also to discover the Casablanca Movement."

More information here.

Photo: "Composition" by Chaïbia Tallal, 1969 / Copyrights CMOOA.

The exhibition displays forty paintings on "the jolts of life and the world", in the words of the artist originally from Salé.

The Foundation for the Protection of Rabat's Cultural Heritage, chaired by Princess Lalla Hasnaa, held a workshop for Rabat's secondary school students. This initiative was part of the "I discover my heritage" programme, which was established in partnership with the Ministry of National Education, the Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication and the UNESCO.

The Foundation indicates that the first edition of this programme saw the participation of 3 720 students from 62 secondary schools in Rabat, Salé and Témara. They discovered the cultural heritage of Rabat and especially the eight world heritage sites of the city : the Almohad ramparts and gates, The Kasbah of the Udayas, the medina, the archaeological site of Chellah, the Habous district of Diour Jamaâ, the medina, the botanical garden and the Hassan mosque.

The Moroccan researcher in philosophy, Driss Kattir, has just released his new book, published by Khoutout, at the 27th International Book and Publishing Fair (SIEL). The 160-page book offers a critical study of plastic arts in Morocco,.

Dedicated to Moroccan (or Moroccan-based) artists and bands, the competition covers three categories: Rock/Metal, Rap/Hip Hop and Fusion/Other contemporary music. Since its launch in 1999, nearly 600 bands have performed on the L'Boulevard stage. The call for applications is open and closes on 15 July.

From 17 June to 30 August, artist Mostafa Maftah exhibits his paintings, composed of natural pigments and mineral materials such as lime or clay, which he applies in monochrome layers of primary and complementary colours.

Photo © Today Morocco

The Moroccan Cinema Centre will not issue a release visa for the film "Sayidat Al Jannah" (The Lady of Paradise) by Egyptian-born Australian director Eli King and former Kuwaiti writer Yasser Al Habib. The Moroccan Cinema Centre banned its commercial or cultural screening in the kingdom. The film was also condemned by the Supreme Council of the Ulema, which declared the content of the film to be contrary to the values of the Kingdom.

The film provoked several controversies abroad and was also banned in Iraq and Iran. Among the points of contention are:

• the depiction of Prophet Muhammad, which is forbidden by Sunni Islam;
• the double plot which establishes a comparison between the murder of an Iraqi child's mother by the Islamic State and the murder of the mother of the Prophet's daughter, Fatima.

The FIFOG, directed by Tahar Houchi, is conceived as a cinematographic mirror of the countries of the East. This 17th edition is dedicated to women's freedom and it is chaired by Lebanese writer Joumana Haddad.

Arab feature films in competition:

• "Habiba" by Hassan Benjelloun (Morocco)
• "Souad" by Ayten Amin (Egypt)
• "Argu" by Omar Belkacemi (Algeria)
• "Soula" by Salah Issad (Algeria)
• "Amira" by Mohamed Diab (Egypt)
• "A story of love and desire" by Leyla Bouzid (Tunisia)
• "Najmat Al-Subh" by Joud Saïd (Syria)

Find the short film programme hereand the documentary programme here.

This award, given by the Aladdin Project at the opening ceremony of the international conference "Dialogue of Tangiers", recognises Azoulay's contribution to enhancing cultural dialogue between countries and promoting the values of coexistence and tolerance.

Photo: André Azoulay / Copyrights 2M.

"Dar Tazi" is the headquarters of the Fez-Saiss association for cultural, social and economic development, as well as of the "Spirit of Fez" Foundation. The rehabilitation of this headquarters, founded at the beginning of the 20th century and built on an area of 6708 m2, cost 23 million dirhams and took three years.

Picture: Tetouan, copyrights 2M.

Princess Lalla Hasnaa presided over the opening ceremony of the 26th edition of the festival, organised under the High Patronage of King Mohammed VI. The 26th edition of the festival took place from June 9 to 12, 2022, with the theme "Architecture and the Sacred". The programme celebrated the end of the pandemic with artists from 15 countries:

• The Roohani Sisters, performing abroad for the first time and among the greatest interpreters of Indian Sufism;
• The Onikki Muqams from Central Asia;
• Pianist and composer Michaël Levinas, accompanied by soprano Marion Grange, for a performance based on the poems of Paul Celan;
• Famous Lebanese trumpet player Ibrahim Maalouf;
• The Balkan music of Haïdouti Orkestar ;
• ...

Find the whole programme here.

Since 2001, the Fez Festival of World Sacred Music also includes a scientific section with a forum. This year, it will discuss architecture as a framework for beliefs and spiritualities, with two main discussions:

• "Space and Ways of Life"
• "Symbols of the Sacred".

Created in 1994 under the high patronage of King Mohammed VI, the Festival of World Sacred Music is organised by the Spirit of Fez Foundation, in partnership with the Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdallah and Al Akhawayn Universities and the Private University of Fez for the development of training in cultural professions.

The president of the NFM, Mehdi Qotbi, and the president of the Casablanca Municipal Council, Nabila Rmili, discussed ways of consolidating their collaboration in the field of culture and museology. The aim of this collaborative approach is to make the economic capital of the Kingdom more dynamic by providing it with museums and cultural spaces. The NFM and the city of Casablanca are committed to democratising art and culture.

The Massala group performs the show "Näss" (people) in Morocco from 28 May to 10 June. The tour was initiated by the French Institute of Meknes. The name of the show is a reference to famous group "Nass El Ghiwane", which promoted the Gnawa culture in the 1970s.

The show brings together seven dancers from hip-hop, traditional Moroccan dance and contemporary circus. Fouad Boussouf is the choreographer and artistic director of the show. He wanted to put the music of the people, the Arab street and the Moroccan youth on stage.

This 10th edition, initiated by the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Communication, has a theme: "The art of Ahwach, a cultural heritage and an ancestral civilisation".

Approximately 1000 artists participate in the event, coming from the regions of Drâa-Tafilalet, Guelmim-Oued-Noun, Souss-Massa and Marrakech-Safi. This edition will be an opportunity to pay tribute to several figures of Ahwach arts, in recognition of their dedication to the preservation of this heritage.

A conference on "Ahwach art, a cultural heritage and an ancestral civilisation" will also take place, with the insight of experts and researchers specialised in the field.

This edition is organized under the High Patronage of king Mohammed VI, in partnership with the prefecture of the province of Ouarzazate, the Council of the Drâa-Tafilalet region, the Regional Council of Tourism, the Provincial Council and the Communal Council.

Photo : copyrights MAP.

Morocco was the guest of honour at the festival, which celebrated 60 years of diplomatic relations between the kingdom and Canada.

In addition to the screenings of Moroccan films and discussions with Moroccan directors and actors (Nabil Ayouch, Maryam Touzani, etc.), the fesival dedicated the days of June 4 and 5 to the discovery of the Moroccan culture.

With the help of the Embassy of the Kingdom and the Moroccan Cultural Centre in Montreal, the organisers offered festival-goers a Moroccan cultural experience. A tent was set up, where it was possible to try Moroccan tea and patisseries, read books on the kingdom, or get henna tattoos. Festival-goers were also able to experience the atmosphere of the souk and the Moroccan medina with several stands under tents displaying local products.

The festival was chaired by Canadian actress and director Mariloup Wolfe. It featured a total of 75 films from 23 countries. The programme can be found here.

Photo : copyrights MAP.

The reaffirmation of this project took place during a meeting in Essaouira between the Advisor to King Mohammed VI and founding president of the Essaouira-Mogador Association, Mr. André Azoulay, the Minister of Youth, Culture and Communication, Mohamed Mehdi Bensaid, the Governor of the City of Arts and Culture and the Minister of Culture and Communication, Mr. Mohamed Bensaid. André Azoulay, the Minister of Youth, Culture and Communication, Mohamed Mehdi Bensaid, the governor of the province of Essaouira, Adil El Maliki, the president of the local council, Tarik Ottmani, the general manager of the local development company "Essaouira Culture Arts and Heritage" and members of the group of Moroccan and Brazilian architects who are partners in the project.

A City of Arts and Culture would ensure Essaouira's status as an intercultural crossroads, according to the Moroccan authorities.

Photo: Essaouira / Copyrights: Sonia-Fatima Chaoui.

The 25-year-old woman from Essaouira shone at the launch of the Gnaoua Festival Tour in her home town. In this musical genre where most names are male, Hind Ennaira is a self-taught artist and one of the few young women who master the Guembri instrument.

The play "El Mahara" by the association "Erricha" (wilaya of Relizane) won the prize for the best complete theatrical performance at the National Cultural Festival of Puppets.

Focusing on the environment and sea pollution, the play fulfilled the criteria set by the event's motto: "Puppet theatre, education and entertainment".

Other awards:

• Prize for the best direction: the Djawhara cooperative (wilaya of Sidi Bel-Abbes) for the play "El Amira wal Mordjana
• Prize for the best theatrical text: ex-aequo "The planted tree" by the Tassili cultural cooperative (Constantine) and "The crying rooster" by the troupe "The small theater" (Blida).
• Jury prize: the Irathen cultural association (wilaya of Tizi Ouzou)
• Best puppeteer: the Essayad troupe from Ain Témouchent.

Photo : copyrights El Watan.

The 17th edition of "Andaloussiates el Djazair", organised under the motto "noubat el mahroussa during the Algerian festival" by the Arts and Culture Establishment of Algiers, took place from 19 May to 10 June.

The event ended with a concert of Andalusian music performed by "Maqam" from Constantine and "El Djazairia El Moussiliya" from Algiers. Several Andalusian music artists were also honoured during the evening: Ismaïl Henni, Hassan Benchoubane, Mohamed Bastandji, Khereddine Bastandji and Sid Ahmed Serri.

Created in 1995, the cultural and musical association "Maqam" is one of the renowned associations in Constantine in the art of Maalouf, which works to preserve Maalouf's heritage and train young people in this field. As for the association "El Djazairia El Moussiliya", it was created in 1930. It is an artistic school specialised in musical training.

Thirteen novels, including five in Arabic, three in Tamazight and five in French, were selected by the jury chaired by academician Abdelhamid Bourayouو, out of a total of 29 novels selected in the first round.

The selected novels written in Arabic are:

• "Fel Bida Kanet El Kalima" by Amel Bouchareb (Chihab Publishing)
• "Mofiola Sani El Aflam n 4561" by Zahra Kechaoui (Édition Mim)
• "Tarhan" by Abdellah Kerroum (Édition Khayel)
• "El Achikan El Khajoulen" by Ismail Ibrir (Édition Hibr)
• "Nooubet El Ghariba" by Mohamed Lamine Ben Rabi (Edition Damma)

The selected novels written in Tamazight:

• "Tit d Yilled Ayen D-Qqarent Tewriqin" by Muhend Akli Salhi (Edition Imtidad)
• "Icenga n Talsa" by Rachida Ben Sidhom Ould Hocine (Achab Edition)
• "Tayri N Umettan" by Achour Ferrouch (Edition El Amel).

The selected novels written in French are:

• "The scene of the story" by Djawed Rostom Touati (Édition APIC)
• "The wind said his name" by Mohamed Abdellah (Édition APIC)
• "Die, you will live happier" by Ahmed Brahimi (Casbah)
• "The truthful knight" by Jean-Baptiste Evette (ANEP)
• "The prodigious fortune" by Corinne Chevallier (Casbah).

The jury includes:

• the critic and academic Amina Belaâla
• poet and translator Lamis Saidi
• the writer and journalist Hamid Abdelkader
• the novelist Abdelwahab Aissaoui
• the researcher and academic Abdelkrim Ouzeghla.

The three winners of the best novel will be announced on June 30, the day of the birth of the novelist and academician Assia Djebar.

Entitled "Landscapes of Kabylia and its splendour", the exhibition shows about thirty paintings dedicated to Algerian landscapes. The artist focuses on peasant life with paintings representing different scenes of life, divided between ploughing, grazing, collecting olives and domestic tasks. Organised by the Arts and Culture Establishment, the exhibition is on display until 28 June.

Photo : copyrights Réveil d'Algérie.

The President of the Republic's Prize for young creators, the Ali Maachi Prize, is one of the most important literary prizes in Algeria. The 2022 winners were announced on the occasion of the National Day of the Artist on June 8.

The winners were selected among 717 candidates:

• Poetry category: artist Rachid Dahmoune
• Category best theatrical performance: Benchernine Idris,
• Category of dramatic writing: Gargoua Mohamed Jalal Eddine
• Category of musical works: Bougherda Abdelwahab
• Category dance and singing art : Hawat Yasmine
• Plastic arts category: Tebaïbia Mohamed Saleh
• Film and audiovisual category: Haitham Ameur
• Novel category: Sarah Mhideb.

The institution will be in charge of collecting films and documentaries made during the war of liberation and post-independence, from several organisations in Algeria and abroad. The declaration of the Counsellor took place at the Forum of Memory, organised by the Mechaal Echahid Association and the daily newspaper "El Moudjahid", on the occasion of the national day of the artist (8 June).

This event is organised on the occasion of the National Day of the Artist by the Centre des Arts et de la Culture with the participation of the Directorate of Tourism and Handicrafts of the wilaya of Algiers, and the wilaya Chamber of Handicrafts.

Decorative arts, tableware, pottery utensils, ... The exhibition presents the work of twenty artists, and it aims to enhance the craft and demonstrate the value of tourism and heritage. To be seen until 14 June.

Photo: copyrights APS.

The prize of this first edition of the contest "Ungal" (Novel in Tamazigh), dedicated to the writer Belaïd Ath Ali, was awarded to Rachida Bensidhoum, at the House of Culture Mouloud Mammeri. Chosen among eleven selected candidates, she is the author of the novel "Ichenga Tulsa" (The Enemies of Humanity). The next edition of the competition will be dedicated to writer Rachid Aliche.

This 16th edition continues until June 16 in the Allées Benboulaid. 25 exhibitors are participating in the event, including 20 from Constantine.

A memorandum of cooperation in the field of cinema has been signed between the Ministry in charge of the Knowledge Economy and Start-ups and the Ministry of Culture and Arts:

• enabling young people to carry out cultural projects, particularly in the film industry, by supporting and training them;
• strengthening the presence of start-ups in the cultural field.

Photo: The Minister Delegate to the Prime Minister in charge of the Knowledge Economy and Start-ups, Yacine El-Mahdi Walid, and the Minister of Culture and Arts, Soraya Mouloudji / Copyrights APS.

The Tunisian director wins the Septimius Awards for his film "Mardi 12". The film stars Syrian actor Bassem Yakhour and Egyptian star Nelly Karim. It tells the story of three athletes who struggle to achieve their dreams.

Majdi Smiri started his career as a rapper before taking his first steps in the 7th art as an actor, alongside Nouri Bouzid, in "Making off" (2006). He has directed several Tunisian TV series including "Bolis" (2015 - 2017).

The Tunisian athlete Ahmed Jaziri has secured his qualification for the senior World Athletics Championships scheduled to take place in Eugene, United States, from July 15 to 24, after winning Saturday's final of the 3,000 metres steeplechase.

Organised by the Tunisian Federation of Amateur Filmmakers (FTCA), the 35th edition of the festival will welcome nearly 1,500 film lovers and 500 amateur filmmakers and film students. Students will present their short films and exchange with regional and international professionals.

In addition to the national and international competitions (amateur, independent and film schools), the 2022 programme includes special screenings dedicated to a particular cinema or country, with films for children (short and feature films), workshops, colloquia led by specialists and academics, and debates on the films in competition.

Six prizes will be awarded in the international competition: the Grand Prix (Golden Falcon), the Special Jury Prize, Best Fiction Film, Best Documentary Film and Best Animation/Experimental Film, as well as Special Mentions. A prize for the Best Photo (300 DT) will be awarded within the framework of the Photo Competition and a prize for the Best Exhibition, organised by the Tunisian Federation of Amateur Filmmakers, will also be awarded.

This first edition was held from 4 to 11 June in Hammamet, near Nabeul. The festival, chaired by filmmaker Mokhtar Ladjimi, brought together films that had won awards or been selected for major festivals. 76 films from 21 countries took part in the competition. Here are the final Arab awards:

Short films:

• "An Ordinary Day" by Anas Zawahri (Syria), and the Golden Galleon was won by the Turkish film "The Criminals" by Serhat Karaaslan.

Feature documentaries:

• Jury Prize: 'Marine of the Mountains' by Karim Aïnouz (Algeria - Brazil); and the Golden Galleon was won by 'Radiograph of a family' by Firouzeh Khosrovani (Iran).

Feature films:

• Special Mention of the Jury: "Beiruth hold'em" by Michel Kammoun (Lebanon);
• Best Direction Award: "Barra al manhaj" by Amr Salama (Egypt)
• Special Jury Mention: "Communion" by Nejib Belkadhi (Tunisia).

Among the guests of the festival are Naceur Khemir, Yamina Ben Guigui and other foreign professionals among the members of the juries including Mamhmoud Hemida (Egypt), Mohamed Maghraoui (Tunisia) and Najoua Najjar (Palestine).

Extract from the festival's press release: "A founding edition that has the dual role of further promoting Tunisia and its multicultural and cinematographic environment as a touristic destination."

"Feminist Echoes" (Asdaa Nissouia) is a feminist art festival, the first of its kind, created by the feminist NGO of the same name. It is organised in collaboration with the French Embassy in Tunisia, the French Institute of Tunisia and UN Women Tunisia.

Theatre and music performances are on the programme of this annual festival, the aim of which is to fight against gender stereotypes and violence. Several master classes and meetings discuss the place of women in modern society and in the artistic field.

The full programme of the festival:

Sunday 12 June

• 6pm: Direction Hela Ayed, "The liberation movements of women victims of violence".
• 6.20 pm: Presentation of the study Ena Zeda: "Women's movements against violence: The Story
• 7.40pm: The play entitled "The Last" by Wafa Tabboubi
• 10pm: Musical performance by the group Philia.

Monday 13 June

• 6pm: Master class on "The treatment of gender-based violence in cinema
• 7.45pm: Screening of "Love in Galilee", a short film by Nader Chalhoub & Layla Menhem (Lebanon), and "Shall I Compare You to a Summer's Day?
• 10pm: La Fabrique x FeMNA.

Tuesday 14th June

• 6pm: Master class on "Gender-based violence and stereotypes in the media
• 8pm: Play "Club de Chant" by Cyrine Gannoun and Rym Haddad
• 11pm: Steps show by Mohamed Aissaoui.

Organised in partnership with the Tazammourt association, the meeting is a dialogue between music, song, poetry and photography. The meeting is centred around the book "The olive tree in thought and literature", prefaced by Dr Imed Ben Salah. The programme includes

• a photographic exhibition on the secular olive trees of Tunisia
• musical performances by the artist Hicham Ktari
• poetry readings in Arabic by the poet Mourad El Thabti
• poetry readings in French by the poet Hend Abdelkafi.

Visual artist Samir Triki has won the Grand Prix of the City of Tunis for the Plastic Arts for the year 2022, an award of 10,000 dinars that was initiated in 2019.

Organised by the Tunis City Council, the announcement of the winner took place at the Sainte Croix municipal cultural space in the Medina of Tunis hosting the annual exhibition of the Grand Prix de la Ville de Tunis pour les arts plastiques. 153 artists participated in this exhibition whose opening was marked by the presence of Souad Abderrahim, mayor of the city of Tunis, and Jamil Zayeni, regional delegate for cultural affairs of Tunis who represented the Minister of Cultural Affairs. The exhibition is open to the public until 31 July 2022.

Before Samir Triki, the sculptor Mourad Ben Brika, won the Grand Prix of Plastic Arts of the city of Tunis in 2021. The winning art pieces will become part of the collection of the Tunis City Council.

The first edition of La Land Art is held in different open and closed spaces of Sidi Bou Saïd. Open-air exhibitions, music and meetings are on the programme for the three days of festivities.

Born in the 1960s in the United States, Land Art is a trend in contemporary art that relies on artistic installation outside of conventional and compartmentalized spaces to be at one with nature. Sana Bennani's association Esprit libre launched the concept in Tunisia, and the event was inaugurated in the presence of the ministers of the environment, cultural affairs, and the mayors of Sidi Bou Saïd, Carthage and La Goulette.

Women artists were in the majority (Sonya Lakhoua, Achraf Ben Zoubir, Alya Khelifi, Sihem Berrich, Chiraz Belfekih, Mariem Kallel, Donia Ben Osman,...). Participants came from Djerba (Philippe Gorin, Isabela Canet, Philippe Leten, Neila Ziadi), Paris (Skander Guetari), Italy (Luigi Maria de Rubeis and Girolamo Palmizi) and other Mediterranean countries.

The winners of the festival:

• The Grand Prize for Art is awarded to the artist Girolamo Palmizi for his work "La Piccola Sicila", a tribute to Tunisia.
• The International Artist's Prize is awarded to Jamel Chaouki Mahdaoui (Tunisia), Luigi Maria De Rubeis (Italy), Hamadi Ben Neya (Tunisia) and Lena Gabsena (Georgia).
• Two honourable mentions were awarded respectively to Mohamed Khalil Cherif for his unconditional support to the cultural action of Sidi Bou Said and to Ahmed Jalel Bennani for his collaboration to the success of the festival.

As part of the summer cultural programme of the Goethe Institute in Tunis, "Sommer Jazz" is being organised, a musical residency that will conclude with a tour in Tunis at the end of June.

If this project was born from the common will of Reiner Witzel (German saxophonist) and Wassim Benrhouma (Tunisian double bassist) to meet on stage in 2013, this year the Goethe-Institut Tunis invites the German saxophonist Reiner Witzel to join the trio of Tunisian musicians composed of Wassim Benrhouma (bass, double bass), Hedi Fahem (guitar) and Mohamed Khachnaoui (drums).

They will be in residence from 14 to 17 June at Dar Sebastien (Hammamet) to create an original work.

The 22nd edition of the Lebanese Music Festival is organised by the French Institute with the support of the Ministry of Culture and the participation of many partners. The programme is scheduled from 17 to 25 June, in several regions of the Land of Cedars, with 18 concerts planned in 13 historical places.

This decentralisation of the festival will give the opportunity to the inhabitants of many villages and cities in Lebanon to enjoy free concerts and to discover the many musical potentials that exist in the region for all generations. The Lebanese heritage will be at the heart of this 22nd edition.

On 21 June in Beirut, a special programme will take place at the Sporting Club from 7pm. The following artists will be featured: Frida, Jocelyn Mienniel, Chassol and Charbel Haber.

Find the full programme here.

On 25 June, in the Arles arena in the south of France and as part of the "Les Escales du cargo" festival, the pop trumpeter will begin the tour of his new album, celebrating crossbreeding and the acceptance of differences in a society where intolerance is on the rise.

Ibrahim Maalouf will then continue with his new creation, 'Capacity to Love', at the Montreux Festival (Switzerland) and North Sea Jazz (Netherlands), before heading to Canada and the United States in the autumn.

Three years after the release of "Lettre Infinie", -M- is back with "Rêvalité", his new album released on 3 June 2022. Without rivalry between Dream (symbolized by the blue in the video clip) and Reality (the red), the whole album revolves around the idea of a reconnection (the purple) between two seemingly opposite worlds. Accompanied by Gail Ann Dorsey (David Bowie and Lenny Kravitz's musician), -M- invites us to live this dream in reality.

At the Théâtre 14, Mehdi-Georges Lahlou continues to divert cultural, religious and moral references with his show "72 virgins", which is inspired by the myth of these women offered as a reward to martyrdoms. Mehdi-Georges Lahlou proposes a series of performative works featuring celestial creatures, the "houris". 

This term is inspired by the one used by Moroccan playwright Youness Anzane, which referred to the promised virgins, but can also mean "with big black eyes" or "fruit". Based on the different interpretations of "houri" and the religious myth of the 72 virgins, Mehdi-Georges Lahlou has imagined a waiting room where one can find four women. This is the start of the show.

Before Theater 14, "72 virgins" was produced at the Centre dramatique national de Rouen and at the Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles in Paris. Directed, written and installed by Mehdi-Georges Lahlou, with Pearl Manifold, Hala Omran, Ghita Serraj and Tamara Saade. Background music by the Lebanese-born Palestinian rapper Osloob.

Photo: Actors Hala Omran (first left), Tamara Saadé (seated in front), Ghita Serraj and Pearl Manifold / Credits " L'Orient-le-Jour ".

Projekt, the Beirut club of Jal el-Dib, organised with the Pole Fit Lebanon community the first pole dance championship of the country.

If Laura Ayoub, head of the Pole Fit Lebanon community, gave only one class per week in the Mar Mikhaël neighbourhood a few years ago, today they are six trainers and offer workshops and private classes in several halls in the capital. This shows the democratisation of this sport, which was once marginalised.

The championship competition was divided into three categories:

• the juniors, which included all dancers under the age of 18;
• amateurs, who have been training for two years or less
• Semi-pros.

Each level competed in several sub-categories including pole art, pole drama and pole provocateur.

Photo: copyrights « L’Orient-le-Jour ».

Ayam Beirut Al Cinema'iya (Beirut Cinema Days) is a bi-annual Arab film festival. Since 1999, it has promoted original, independent cinema that encourages new talent and highlights Arab stories told by Arab artists. The 11th edition of the festival takes place from 10 to 19 June 2022.

The festival takes place in venues across Lebanon, and also online on AFLAMUNA throughout June.

The festival opens with "Farha" by Darin J. Sallam (Jordan) which recently won the Jury Award for "Best Feature Film" at the Arab Film Festival Malmö in Sweden. It will end with the feature film "The Sea In Front of Us" by Ely Dagher (Lebanon).

Find the full programme here.

Also planned for 19 June, at the Al Madina Theatre, is a concert by Rima Khcheich, who will perform famous songs by Egyptian divas Leila Murad, Hoda Sultan, Sabah, Shadia, and Souad Hosni.

Also worth seeing is the exhibition "In this Place: Reels of Beirut". From 11 June to 20 July at the Mina Image Centre in Beirut, five short films will be screened, edited from fifty Lebanese, Arab and foreign scenes and fiction films made between 1935 and 1975. The project was realised in collaboration with the Arab Image Foundation and with the support of the Swiss Embassy in Lebanon and Syria.

Finally, on 18 June at Dar El Nimer (Hamra), a panel discussion entitled "How do we move forward" will be held with Nayla Geagea, Ghassan Halawani, Ghassan Moukheiber, Assaad Chaftari and Dr Joyce Nassar. The discussion focuses on healing initiatives for survivors of post-traumatic events, but also for the next generations who have inherited these traumas.

Christian Tambeh decided to create a local luxury ready-to-wear line at a time when imported products were unaffordable on the Lebanese market.

His label is dedicated to Formula 1, and the name of his brand recalls the year of the first world championship for car drivers. He is launching his clothing line on 16 June 2021.

Christian Tambeh: "The idea of Nineteen Fifty is to accompany and convey a culture in which all car, motorbike and motorsport enthusiasts can find themselves in a market that does not, or very little, meet their expectations. And we were surprised by the enthusiasm that greeted the launch. Based on this response, we recently launched a women's capsule collection.

The e-shop is accompanied by a blog that shares interviews with racing enthusiasts: Abdo Feghali, Assaad Raphaël, ...

Website: www.nineteenfiftyworld.com

Yasmina Hilal's first solo exhibition, "Trial & Error", presents her first large-scale collages based on her characteristic combination of alternative techniques with analogue photography and a series of 10 new collages on acetate paper.

Yasmina Hilal: "My process begins by photographing my subjects intimately on film. Each film is processed and digitised from start to finish. From there, it's all trial and error in terms of collage. I start using different techniques on my prints like cutting, sewing or stitching without ever relying on digital manipulation. This usually takes me a while and I don't mass produce. I focus on different techniques each time, stapling, using ink, printing on different types of paper, acetate paper, parchment paper etc. It's all about the textures for me. Textures and layers are important in my work."

Freelance photographer Yasmina Hilal has worked for L'Orient Le Jour, Dazed, Harper's Bazaar Arabia, Fashion Trust Arabia, NPR, Highsnobiety and Vice Arabia.

Photo: "Luminous", 2022, Yasmina Hilal / Instagram account @zalfahalabi.artgallery.

The artist's solo exhibition continues until 16 July at the Galerie et Edition Stephan Witschi. It presents the eclectic work of Zena Assi, with paintings, collages, ceramics and a film. This is the artist's first solo exhibition in Switzerland.

Zena Assi's work tells of the relationships and conflicts between the individual and her spatial environment. She uses different media to document and explore cultural and social changes. She attempts to capture the imprint of our contemporary urban environment and the impact of ideologies and political trends in our society.

Zena Assi lives and works in London. She graduated with honours from the Lebanese Academy of Fine Arts. Her work has been featured in various international auction houses (Christie's, Sotheby's, Bonhams and Phillips) and many of her pieces are in public and private collections (Lebanese Academy of Fine Arts in Beirut, Barjeel Art Foundation in Sharjah and Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris).

Photo: work by Zena Assi / Copyrights Gallery & Edition Stephan Witschi.

The Art on 56th gallery is hosting Hoda Baalbaki's exhibition until July 9th.

She explores the theme of self-reflection through the expression of beauty, channeling her creativity to depict scenes rooted in the intersection of memory and imagination.
She participated in several solo exhibitions and collective ones in Lebanon and the Middle East. She is a member of the "Visual Lebanese Artists Union" and won the first prize of the Hariri Graduates Association for two consecutive years in 2002 and 2003.

Photo: Hoda Baalbaki's work / Copyrights Art on 56th Gallery.

Launched in June 2021, the Festival des Fantasmes is being organised for the first time in Paris, to allow a greater number of people to discover or rediscover this universe, but also for filmmakers, producers and festival-goers to discuss their films.

The Lebanese films in the "Queer Fantasies" category:

• "Bellydance Vogue by Hadi Moussally
• "Divine Rupture" by Malak Mroueh
• "Courage" by Malak Mroueh

The Museum of the Prophet's Biography and Islamic Civilization in Madinah, launched last year under the supervision of the Muslim World League, is set to begin a touring exhibition in Morocco featuring the life of the Prophet and the history of Islam.

The first edition of the exhibition will open to guests on 25 July at the headquarters of the World Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation in Rabat. The travelling exhibition will use the latest technology and display techniques to document the biography of the Prophet and Islamic civilisation to Muslim and non-Muslim visitors. It will be presented in Arabic, English and French and will include 10 sections using technologies such as holographic imaging, virtual and augmented reality, interactive 3D displays, stereoscopies and educational panoramas.

DJ Snake, whose real name is William Grigahcine, has not been back to the Parc des Princes for ten years, as he is a fervent supporter of the Paris-Saint-Germain team.

For more than two hours, DJ Snake played his most popular tracks, between light shows and fireworks, without forgetting his track "Disco Maghreb" whose video shot in Algeria became viral with more than 20 million views on YouTube just twelve days after its broadcast.

Other celebrities joined the event: Cheb Khaled, Omar Sy, David Guetta and Stromae.

The 8th edition of the festival was widely covered by the media, and much of it was broadcast on YouTube and shared on the festival's social networking pages.

The Saudi film "Quareer" - an anthology of five vignettes, each made by a different woman as part of their graduation project - was the winner of the festival.

Each story is about Saudi women who lived in the kingdom before the implementation of emancipatory policies. The five heroines, Raghid al-Nahdi, Norah Almowald, Ruba Khafagi, Fatma Alhazmi and Nour Alamir, broke records by winning four awards: Best Feature Film, Best Performance, Best Cinematography and the Jury Prize. They were awarded the Golden Palms, with a cash prize for each win.

UK-based Iraqi filmmaker and producer Koutaiba Al-Jabani ("Leaving Baghdad") chaired the main jury, which also included Saudi-Canadian actor and writer Aixa Kay ("Jasmine Road") and Egyptian filmmaker Ahmed Fawzi Saleh ("Poisonous Roses").

The Saudi Film Festival was founded by its pioneering artistic director Ahmed Al-Mulla in 2008, when cinema was still banned in Arabia for religious reasons and only took place intermittently. The event is now organised by the Dammam Culture and Arts Society in partnership with the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra) in collaboration with the Saudi Cinema Association with the support of the Saudi Film Commission and the newly established Red Sea Film Festival.

It is the world's largest e-sports and gaming event. Gamers8 will be held at a purpose-built state-of-the-art venue in Riyadh Boulevard City from 14 July to 8 September, with some of the world's best players taking part.

Organised under the theme "Gamers8: Your Portal to the Next World", the event features festivals, concerts, performances and other events in addition to competitions. Concerts will start on 14 July and run until 1 September.

Organised by the Saudi E-Sports Federation, Gamers8 focuses on four main pillars: professional e-sports, festivals, music, and "The Next World Summit" (a conference on e-sports and video games that will bring together industry leaders and experts from all around the world). Six prizes will be awarded, and the total prize pool is $15 million.

The Algiers-born actress will also star in the horror film Cuckoo, directed by Tilman Singer, alongside John Malkovich, Gemma Chan and Euphoria star Hunter Schafer

The Arts Promenade, one of the nine zones of the Jeddah Season festival, now hosts Souk al-Sabt every Saturday to give artists and other creative people the opportunity to showcase their work.

Local businesses are invited to participate by selling their handicrafts, creations and even homemade food, allowing visitors to experience these products beyond the boundaries of the digital world.

Interested parties can apply on the Matloob platform, which lists the opportunities available at all Saudi Seasons events.

Eighteen designers from Europe, the Middle East and Morocco presented their ready-to-wear and haute couture collections to the many guests in the gardens of the Mandarin Oriental hotel.

The designers: Amor Guellil (Algeria), Khadidja Chraïbi (Morocco-Spain), Jikta Klett (Czech Republic), Hind Tahiri (Dubai), Zineb Hazim (Italy-Morocco), Nun (Morocco), Zor (Morocco), Zineb Hazimi (Italy), Diamant Noir Jewels (Morocco), Rena (Spain-Morocco), Gemy Maalouf (Lebanon), Addy van den Krommenacker (Holland), Wafaa Idrissi (Morocco), Renata (Morocco), Zeynep Erdogan and Tophills (Turkey), Serhat Çargritekin (Turkey), Calamain (Morocco) and Salma Lazrak (Morocco).

Organised by the European Union delegation in Riyadh in cooperation with the embassies of EU Member States and Arabia Pictures Group, the festival aims at fostering cultural exchange and strengthening mutual understanding between Saudis and Europeans.

Scheduled to take place at The Esplanade shopping mall, the festival will screen 14 films including some from Spain, Germany and France.

The young woman is enjoying a string of successes. After releasing her single "Give me a Kiss" in April, she also opened for superstar Dua Lipa during her "Future Nostalgia" tour. As the face of Kenzo, Lolo Zouaï has added a new string to her bow: haute-couture.

Photo: Lolo Zouaï for Kenza / Copyrights instagram account @kenzo.

The Third Line presents Sara Naim's third solo exhibition at the gallery. "Rose Tinted" introduces a new body of work featuring photographs based on utopian scenes that don't entirely correspond with their sculpted forms. For the last time after six years, Naim uses plexiglass, wood and print in her wall and floor-based artworks, which contain imagery related to food, land, and objects depicted in an idealised form. The artist likes to work around the perception of reality, often distorted by our own projections and illusions. On view until 8 July 2022.

Sara Naim is a Syrian artist who grew up between Dubai and London. She received her MFA in Fine Art Media from the Slade School of Fine Art in London (2014), received her BA in Photography from the London College of Communication (2010) and her Foundation Art from Chelsea College of Art (2007). Naim is primarily interested in the notion of borders as a point of connection rather than division. Questioning different ways of seeing the invisible, her work explores the fine line between interiority and exteriority.

Photo: "Grass Scene"by Sara Naim , 2021/ Copyrights The Third Line. 

Alia Farid (Kuwait) and Mounira Al Solh (Lebanon) are both on the list of international nominees for the tenth edition of the $50,000 Artes Mundi prize. The artists' works will be presented in an Artes Mundi exhibition scheduled from October 2023 to March 2024.

Alia Farid has exhibited in Germany, Japan, Spain and the United States. She is a multidisciplinary artist whose work encompasses writing, drawing, film sculpture and installation.

Al-Solh is also a multidisciplinary artist who plays with several media: video installations, paintings, drawings, embroideries, ... Her work focuses on self-reflection, feminism but also on different societal and political issues.

Farid and Al-Solh will compete alongside Rushdi Anwar from Kurdistan, Carolina Caycedo from Colombia, Naomi Rincon Gallardo from Mexico, Taloi Havini from Papua New Guinea and Nguyen Trinh Thi from Vietnam.

Photo: 'At the Time of the Ebb', photography, Alia Farid, 2019.

Hosted by ICD Brookfield Place Gallery, the exhibition runs until 30 June. It presents a series of 29 photographic portraits that tell the stories of sixty people, from many different backgrounds, at the time of the Covid-19 pandemic. A shared experience that unites despite cultural differences, bringing us back to our humanity.

Yaman Nabeel's work was spread out between 2020 and 2022, between London, Berlin and Dubai. His work includes portraits and interviews with playwrights, actors, hospital workers, journalists and lawyers. His exhibition focuses on the concept of unity.

Yaman Nabeel: "As an Iraqi and as an Arab, the word unity resonates a lot inside of me. My NGO was called FC Unity and used the global power of football to bring people together. Having this exhibition in Dubai, UAE, is a tribute to that concept.

Born in Baghdad, Yaman Nabeel grew up in Hungary and then moved to London where he has lived since 1992. He is the son of the exiled poet Nabeel Yasin. His family left Iraq in 1980 when he was four years old. They then lived in France, Lebanon and the former East Germany, before settling in Hungary in 1981.

"Waiting for Time/Intersecting Realities is his eighth solo exhibition. 

Photo: copyrights Yaman Nabeel.

The 19-year-old rising star features in the Chanel Métiers d'Art spring 2022 campaign, photographed by fashion photographer Mikael Jansson.

The film is the first production of Sharjah Media City (or Shams). It deals in particular with the issue of domestic violence. Directed by Nahla Al Fahad, the film was nominated in three categories at the Septimius Awards: Best Director, Best Actress and Best Asian Film.

Photo: Amal Mohamed, winner of the Septimius Award for Best Asian Actress, Amsterdam / Copyrights Shams.

Born in 1901 to a Lebanese leather merchant and a Turkish mother, Habboub was one of the first Lebanese women doctors to study medicine abroad in the United States. Upon her return to Beirut, she opened her own practice, inspiring other Lebanese women to follow their own education. She later co-founded the Lebanese Red Cross Association, and was a board member of the Muslim Orphan's Home, the Young Muslim Women's Association and the Maqassed Hospital.

Palestinian architect and designer duo Elias and Yousef Anastas launched Local Industries in 2012, a shop and cultural platform bringing together designers, architects and engineers.

Elias Anastas: "The idea is to create new forms of synergies and links between designers and manufacturers, to open up new production channels. For example, a sound artist working with a blacksmith or a scientist collaborating with a stonemason. We want to have a space that encourages new interactions.

The brothers presented their work at Salone del Mobile 2022, with pieces designed by Local Industries. Also among the new MENA talent at the event was Lebanese designer Richard Yasmine and his "Woven Whispers" series. This collection of furniture is a collaboration between several Lebanese artisans, promoting their techniques and know-how of natural fibres, rattan, wicker and wood. 

Similarly, Lebanese designer Karma Dabaghi presents three series of hand-blown glass vases from the renowned Khalife Brothers workshop in Sarafand. The vases are made from broken recycled glass, found after the Lebanese protests in 2019 and from the Beirut harbour explosion in 2020.

Photo: Richard Yasmine's installation at Salone del Mobile 2022 / Copyrights: Amir Farzad.

A visual artist living in Abu Dhabi, he was a professor at New York University Abu Dhabi.

Egyptian Minister of Culture Inas Abdel Dayem, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Khaled el-Enani and Suez Governor Abdel Majid Saqr announced the dates of the festival, which will be held at the National Museum of Suez from 24 to 26 June, with six performances.

The programme features well-known Egyptian musicians such as singer Hany Shaker - who will be accompanied by an orchestra under the direction of Mostafa Helmy - marimba player Nesma Abdel Aziz and her ensemble, and singer Ahmed Gamal and his ensemble.

The evenings will also feature singers affiliated with the Cairo Opera House performing Arabic repertoire such as Rehab Mutawa, Reham Abdel-Hakim, Hasna and Ashraf Waleed. These singers will be accompanied by an orchestra conducted by Ahmed Amer.

The festival will take place at the National Museum of Suez from 24 to 26 June and will feature six varied performances.

The track is available on all music platforms, and is produced by PopArabia. ARXP Cartel aims to unite audiences in the MENA region with a collective of influential rappers from the Arab world.

Styla Jamaiki" features the following celebrities: Eslam Jawaad (Lebanon-Syria), Seidosimba (Sudan), Didine Canon 16 (Algeria), Stylo G (Jamaica) and Shahyn (Egypt).

Moamen Othman, Head of the Museums Sector at the Supreme Council of Antiquities, explains that this training programme is part of the project to rehabilitate the Museum of Islamic Art and related museums, namely the Gayer-Anderson Museum, the National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation and the Al-Manyal Palace.

The training programme includes a number of courses, including museum collection management, preservation of archival materials and the science of materials used for maintenance and restoration. It will be implemented in three phases between July and September 2022. 

The President of the Egyptian Opera House, Magdy Saber, and the artist Mohamed el-Nasser inaugurated the event on 12 June in the Salah Taher Hall of the Cairo Opera House. The exhibition aims to promote the Siwa oasis, a rich cultural heritage of Egypt, close to the Libyan border.

Photo: Work by Mohamed el-Nasser / Credits Misr Al Youm.

The Gate Travel Expo conference and exhibition promotes the tourism sector in Egypt. The event brings together many international, regional and national tourism boards, airlines, various travel technology providers, travel agents, etc. The main objective of the event is to respond to the growth of tourism in Egypt and its recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

The exhibition will be held for the first time at the Presidential Palace in Koubbeh in September 2022, for four days. 56 countries are participating in the event including: the Sultanate of Oman, Qatar, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Kingdom of Bahrain.

• literature: the Egyptian writer Ibrahim Abdel Megeed (إبراهيم عبد المجيد) ;
• arts: the Egyptian director Daoud Abdel Sayed (داود عبد السيد) ;
• social sciences: the Iraqi thinker Ragai Attia (رجائي عطية) .

The launch of the celebrations began on Sunday, June 12. On this occasion, Minister of Culture Haifa Najjar announced the establishment of a platform dedicated to Jordanian creators and intellectuals, to help promote their work.

Mohamed Ould Amar, director general of the Arab Organisation for Education, Culture and Science, said that Jordan's cultural renaissance was due in particular to the actions undertaken by King Abdullah II. He welcomed the participation of various Palestinian personalities, assuring them that the holy city of Jerusalem would always remain the eternal capital of Arab culture.

At the end of the ceremony, Palestinian Minister of Culture Atef Abu Saif handed over the Arab Capital of Culture banner to his Jordanian counterpart, Ms Haifa Najjar (Bethlehem was the Arab Capital of Culture in 2021).

Photo: copyrights Jordan Times.

Considered one of the pioneers of the revival of Egyptian art and the father of surrealism in Egypt, Ramses Younane died in 1966. The room dedicated to him in the museum shows 24 of his paintings, produced in the 1960s. The artist was also a writer and translator, and his efforts to maintain a cultural dialogue between East and West remain considerable, especially in view of his translations of major Western works into Arabic.

The writer's work focuses on the grammar of the Arabic language through the story of a scribe, Rustam (رستم), who exchanges with the important Persian-born Arabic grammarian Sîbawayh (سيبويه). Through history, it is the establishment of the Arabic language that is studied, including the development of Arabic language schools between Basra, Baghdad and Kufa.

Mahmoud Hasan al-Jasim (born 1966) is a Syrian writer and academic. He taught for many years in Aleppo before joining Qatar University in 2012. He has published three novels: 'Forgive Me, Mother' (2014), 'Brazen Looks' (2015) and 'Mariam's Journey' (2015), the last of which was nominated for the Arabic Booker Prize.

Minister of Culture in the interim government in Lebanon, Mohammad Wissam Al-Mortada, sponsored the handover ceremony for the presidency of the National Higher Institute of Conservatory of Music, between soprano Hiba Kawas, and maestro Walid Moslem, former president of the Institute.

Photo: copyrights Al Mayadeen.

The festival launches a competition dedicated to young filmmakers, chaired by Tunisian star Dhafer El Abidine (ظافر العابدين). The idea is to give young talents two days to make a short film. The winners will get a prize, a scholarship, and the opportunity to attend a film school in France in 2022

It would involve about twenty pieces, most of which would come from Palmyra. The director of the museum, Michal Lukeš, explained that they would be restored in the museum's workshops in the presence of Syrian specialists, before being returned to Syria. The process is expected to take one year. Michal Lukeš stressed that this operation is part of the existing cooperation policy with the Syrian General Directorate of Antiquities and Museums. The pieces will be exhibited at the Czech National Museum before being sent to Syria.

Photo: credits Sana.

The Palestinian actress was awarded the Mercure Prize, in recognition of her artistic career and her commitment to various social causes.

The visual artist participated in the 15th International Exhibition organised by the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum, in which 200 artists from all over the world were presented.

Saba Razzouk announced that after receiving the award, she was invited to join the Japan International Academy of Art Research, and she was also invited to participate in exhibitions in Europe in cooperation with the Chinese Ministry of Culture.

Saba Razzouk currently finishes her doctorate in art in China and has already participated in many art exhibitions held there, including some in cooperation with the International Academy of Art in Japan, the Hong Kong Academy of Art, etc. 

Photo: copyrights The Limited Times.

The exhibition, entitled "Living Rooms: Objects of Memory and Loss", deals with the issue of Palestinian identity through private collections, interior decorations, and the interiors of Palestinian homes. Each artist who contributed to the event was inspired by different locations, from the Gaza Strip to Palestinian refugee camps.

The participating artists: Lara Salous, Mahdi Baraghithi, Amer Abu Matar, Ola Zeitoun, Rana Batrawi, Issa Ghorayeb, Reem Al-Masry, Rana Nazzal Hamada and Shatha Abu Saleh. On view until 23 August.

The Minister of Youth, Culture and Communication, Mohamed Mehdi Bensaid, presented the Ibn Battuta Prizes for Travel Literature, awarded by the Arab Centre for Geographical Literature. These prizes were won by 11 laureates from different countries, on the sidelines of the 27th International Book and Publishing Fair (SIEL).

The winners of the Ibn Battuta Award are:

• "Realised journeys" category: Issa Odeh Marhouma (Jordan) and Muhammad Ainak (Morocco).
• "Studies" category: Hafez Qassem Saleh Sadiq (Yemen)
• "translated stories": Naima Al-Hosani and Hadi Abdullah Al-Tai (United Arab Emirates)
• "contemporary travel" category: Lina Hoyan Al-Hassan from Syria and Ammar Ali Hassan from Egypt
• "Travel notebook" category: Ahmed Saeed Najm (Palestine).
• "Translated newspapers" category: Youssef Waqas (Syria) and Ayman Hassan (Tunisia)
• "travel reports" category: Zahia Mansour (Algeria),
• "translation of traveling reports" category: Ahmed Zakaria (Egypt) and Malak Deniz Ozdemir (Turkey).

The Ibn Battouta Prize, launched in 2003, is awarded annually for the best annotated and written works of travel literature.

The Al-Ghad Theatre in Cairo resumed its activity on 6 June. The historic theatre was rehabilitated by the Ministry of Culture. The play "Happiness Maker" (Honey and Tahina - Jinan to Jinan), based on the masterpieces of Badi' Khairi and Najib Al-Rihani, directed by Nasser Abdel Moneim, will be the first performance at the Al Ghad Theatre since its reopening.

Organised by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth, this event aims at encouraging cultural dialogue between Italy and the Sultanate of Oman. It takes place from 7 to 10 June at the Colosseum Archaeological Park.

The opening ceremony was celebrated with Italian and Omani music concerts. Two exhibitions were also organised, highlighting the cultural heritage and history of the Sultanate. The photography exhibition featured 38 works by Omani artists and 3 by Italian artists.

The opening ceremony was attended by Dr Ahmed Salim Ba'omar, Ambassador of the Sultanate of Oman to the Italian Republic, heads of diplomatic missions in Italy, officials from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth and Italian officials.

Photo: copyrights Sami Salim Zahir Al Hanai.

The festival will run from 19 to 22 June. It is organised by the Oman Film and Theater Society, in cooperation with the Office of the Governor of Al Dakhiliyah. 66 films have been selected from the 150 applications received.

The ninth edition of the International Film Festival "Palestine Days" 2022 will be held from 1 to 7 November, in 5 Palestinian cities: Jerusalem, Ramallah, Gaza, Bethlehem and Haifa. This edition is directed by Hanna Atallah.

The festival will feature Palestinian, Arab and international feature films, shorts and documentaries. All films will be presented for the first time in Palestine.

The festival jury will award the Sunbird Production Prize, to support the production of a Palestinian short fiction film or a film focusing on Palestine.

The festival will feature a special event to mark the fortieth anniversary of the PLO's departure from Beirut.

For more information, click here.

The Forum hosted 125 artists from 15 countries. Dr. Refaat Al Bawaza said he was honoured by the award, adding that the art of calligraphy brought comfort to his soul. Dr. Refaat Al Bawaza holds a PhD in Islamic history and arts. He also holds an international license in the art of Arabic calligraphy from the Baghdadi School.

The poet will head the institution until 2024. The Union of Jordanian Writers was created in 1987, with the aim of renewing and accompanying Arab-Islamic thought in the kingdom

Held in the hall of the King Abdullah II Cultural Centre, the exhibition features forty paintings by the artist, which depict our environment in an abstract way. The deputy director of the Zarqa Directorate of Culture, Dr Mona Saud, opened the event.

Photo : copyrights Al Rai.

A retrospective exhibition of the work of Nabila Helmy, who passed away in 2011, is held at the National Museum of Jordan until 20 July 2022. With 253 paintings using different materials - acrylic, watercolour, oil or charcoal - Nabila Helmy's works tell the story of her artistic journey between East and West.

Born in Jerusalem, she lived for many years in the United States, and she studied in Lebanon before exhibiting in Jordan, Germany, Tunisia, Bangladesh and Sweden.

The film summarises two decades of the Centre's career and its branches, directed by Eva Daoud. "Sheikh of Enlightenment" won the best film award in the documentary film competition. 57 films out of 109 were selected to compete in the various competitions of the festival. 57 films out of 109 were selected to compete in the various competitions of the festival.  

The Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities announced the completion of the restoration of the historic minaret of the Al-Fadhel Mosque in the capital, Manama, to its original design and historical aesthetic. It was inaugurated by Sheikha Mariam bint Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa.

A team of 35 people from the Italian Centre for the Preservation of Antiquities and the Culture Authority worked on the project to restore the minaret to its original appearance when it was built in 1938.

The 8th edition of this festival takes place from 16 to 19 June. It will host nearly 40 poets and 15 critics. Saudi Arabia is the guest of honour. Saudi poetry will be highlighted, in particular thanks to the "Anthology of Contemporary Saudi Poetry", a book recently translated into French by the festival director and Tunisian poet Moëz Majed.

The Saudi poets participating in the event are Ibrahim Al-Hussein, Abdullah Al-Safar, Muhammad Al-Harz, Abdullah Thabet, Dr. Saeed Al-Suraihi, Ahmed Al-Mulla, Badia Kashgari, Ghassan Al-Khunaizi, Muhammad Al-Abbas , Hashem Al-Jahdali and Saleh Zamanan.

The Lebanon Cinema Foundation has launched an EU-funded initiative to revive Lebanese film production despite the country's multiple crises. The initiative consists of a free 4-month training and mentoring programme in cooperation with the ESA Business School and the Smart ESA Business Accelerator. 

Five producers have been selected to participate in the programme:

• Rosie Al-Hajj
• Christelle Younes
• Gabi Zarazir and Michel Zarazir
• Simon Soueid
• Nicolas Khabbaz. 

Under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, the ICCROM Regional Office in Sharjah will award good practices in cultural heritage conservation and management in the Arab region in 2022. This biennial award aims to honour and reward outstanding work that contributes to the protection and vitality of tangible cultural heritage in the Arab world. It will highlight good practice in cultural heritage conservation and management in terms of the technical skills employed as well as the social and economic impact of the project on local communities.

• The Beirut Assist Cultural Heritage (BACH) project in Lebanon. The jury was impressed by the BACH project’s ability to mobilize individuals and institutions, including civil society, to rescue Beirut’s destroyed urban fabric following the 2020 port blast – including cultural spaces, such as museums, library collections and residential buildings – and redeem the memories these places hold.
• The rehabilitation and restoration of residential courtyards and historical buildings in the vicinity of Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Old City of Jerusalem, Palestine. The jury was also struck by the Al Aqsa Mosque rehabilitation project’s systematic approach to making an impact on the families living in this historic, yet threatened, area. The project demonstrates the positive effect heritage conservation can have on healing.

In addition to the two Grand Prize awardees, the jury awarded special recognition to four additional projects:

• Sheltering and Protecting Hisham's Palace’s Mosaic Floor, Jericho;
• Revitalization and Conservation of the Cultural Heritage of Al Qarara Village, Gaza;
• Digital Documentation of Historical Documents, Jerusalem; and 
• Collart-Palmyra: A comprehensive project on the Baalsahamîn temple in Palmyra, Syria.

The founder of the Lebanese National Theatre, actor and director Kassem Istanbouli, stressed that the aim of the festival is to establish a theatrical movement and an international festival in Tripoli and to establish a link between the south and the north, which is the continuation of the dream that started with the establishment of the Lebanese National Theatre in Tyre in 2018. Thus, "thanks to the efforts of young volunteers, the imaginary wall between Lebanese regions is broken through culture" - Kassem Istanbouli.

The 23rd edition of the International Oud Festival, organised by the Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication of the Kingdom of Morocco, awarded the Emirati musician Ali Obaid Al Hefeti the Ziryab Skills Award 2022 for his musical creativity and in recognition of his contribution to the Emirati artistic heritage.

The Ziryab Award is considered one of the most prestigious awards in the field of music in the MENA region and internationally. It has been awarded to prominent names in the art scene, including artist Abdelwahab Doukkali, Lebanese musician Marcel Khalifé, Moroccan artist and singer Nouamane Lahlou, Iraqi oud player Dr. Naseer Shamma, Juan Carmona, and the Joubran Trio from Palestine.

Photo : copyrights WAM.

Expatriate soprano Assil Massoud won the award for best voice in a specialised training programme in Barcelona, out of eight other candidates. The training programme included specialised workshops, including Balkanto singing techniques.

On 18 June, at the Espace Magh, the Orchestre National de Barbès will be giving a concert to mark its 25th anniversary of touring, with a new album for 2022. This album once again mixes genres with a blend of music from the Maghreb to France.

This will be Hafsia Herzi's third feature film, one after "Bonne Mère" which won the "Un Certain Regard" prize at the Cannes Film Festival. The director wants to adapt Fatima Daas' autofiction, published in 2020, in which the author analyses her relationship with the Muslim religion and the discovery of her homosexuality.

Photo: Fatima Daas / Copyrights Marianne.

Casa Árabe presents this exhibition at its Madrid headquarters as part of the official programme of PhotoEspaña 2022, until the 25th of September 2022. The exhibition brings together the work of twelve photographers belonging to the artists' group Collective 1200, which emerged in Lebanon at the end of 2019 in response to a need to create networks of mutual support in a context of growing uncertainty. Two artists from the collective curated this exhibition: Tarek Haddad and Betty Ketchedjian.

Excerpt from the press release of the event: "The exhibition begins in a space of indefinite time, confusing past, present and an uncertain future. It is built upon an oxymoron: the idea of a progressive loop which creates the sensation of evolution and déjà vu, though it always ends up taking us back to the same starting point. Movement becomes motionless, human presence becomes absent, tranquility becomes morbid. Here, the axis of time takes the form of a spiral in which our lives seem to spin endlessly, history repeats itself over and over again, and a feeling of stagnation is imminent. Trees, broken glass, billboards, the port of Beirut and other items are spread throughout the different works, acting as clues to the fact that, no matter what your subjective, personal experience may be, the larger narrative of the past few years in Lebanon has been shared by the majority, regardless of the differences in society or in their daily lives."

The artists in the exhibition: Myriam Boulos, Manu Ferneini, Omar Gabriel, Paul Gorra, Elsie Haddad, Tarek Haddad, Betty Ketchedjian, Rima Maroun, Laura Menassa, Roger Mokbel, Walid Nehme and Ieva Saudargaite Douaihi.

Photo: Exhibition poster, Myriam Boulos / Copyrights Casa Árabe.

"The Blinding Light" exhibition, on display until the 18th of September, is an artistic project by Mounir Fatmi. It is inspired by the healing of the deacon Justinian. In this scene, the Arab brothers perform the miracle of healing the deacon by transplanting the leg of a recently deceased Ethiopian. This scene evokes the mixing of a white body with a black limb, but also the living with the dead, thus questioning notions of race, cultural mixing and identity.

To address the representation of this event, Mounir Fatmi has produced a series of photomontages throughout his career (the first of which dates from 2013) containing several images of an operating theatre. Thus, the medical staff is placed next to the two saints, forming a single working group. As a result, the ghosts and the living are present in another form of reality, a fantastic temporality as miraculous as the biblical scene itself.Mounir Fatmi's idea is to combine spheres of belief often perceived as antagonistic. On one hand, science, order, reason and the tangible; on the other hand, religion, the miraculous and the sacred.

Photo: Copyrights Mounir Fatmi / Casa Árabe.

From 23 June to 1 July, the 22nd European festival will be held in Algiers, Oran and Constantine, with an exclusively female programme. About twenty artists from fifteen European countries will be represented. Programme to come!