Revue culturelle N°67

Morocco has been unanimously elected to the presidency of the World Veterans Federation in the person of the High Commissioner for Former Resistance Fighters and Former Members of the Liberation Army, Mustapha El Ktiri.

Photo : copyrights 2m.

On 9 March, the artist released "Daq L'Hal" in which he deals with these taboos. This song is the result of a partnership with the association "Reda's Smile", produced by Amine Choukah and signed by Universal Music Mena.

Hamza El Fadly is an author, singer and composer. He was "Best male artist in North Africa" at the 2018 AFRIMA trophy.

For International Women's Rights Day, the association Mentor'Elles announces the publication of this book, which is the first volume of a collection dedicated to the inspiring stories of Moroccan women. Authors, artists, philosophers, activists, sportswomen, scientists, politicians, ... Their careers are diverse and their lives are told in the form of tales, in Arabic and French.

The book is published by Sochepress, under the original French title « Les Intrépides : Fabuleuses Histoires pour Héroïnes en Herbe ».

"The Gastronomic Meetings of Taghazout Bay" is a gastronomic festival which brings together renowned French and Moroccan chefs. It aims to give an image of a gastronomic destination to Taghazout Bay, by federating all political, economic, tourist and educational actors.

The Taghazout Bay Gastronomic Meetings will take place from 16 to 19 March. They were created in 2015 by Jean Colin and sponsored by star chefs Jacques Marcon and Kamal Rahal Essoulami, who is also president of the Moroccan Federation of Culinary Arts.

In addition to promoting national gastronomy, these meetings are an opportunity to bring together those who are passionate about this art and discipline, while giving young people the opportunity to learn from professionals and gain visibility. More than 500 apprentices took part in the first five editions.

The 2023 event will feature argan oil and various Moroccan specialities. The curious will be able to participate in tastings which will take place on 17 March in several hotels: Hyatt Place Taghazout Bay, Radisson Blue Resort Taghazout Bay Surf Village, ...

Photo: copyrights "The Taghazout Bay Gastronomic Meetings".

Hasnaa Doumi, 29, is at the head of the men's football team of her hometown, Fkih Ben Salah, which participates in the national amateur championship. She succeeds Mohamed Larif.

Hasnaa has been passionate about football since she was a young girl. She is a physical education teacher and former player in the Atlas 05 women's team. She also coached the women's football team of the Tadla League.

Photo: copyrights Hespress.

Born in Casablanca, Soukaïna Ohid is back with a new single, "Sablier" (hourglass) which is a preview of her next album. In French, the track encourages everyone to enjoy the present time, and free themselves from the shackles of established conventions. The video is shot in the Agafay desert. Soukaïna Ohid (or "Souki S") plays with traditional and contemporary codes, whether it be through the melodies of the song or the outfits chosen in the video.

"On Marche" (We Walk) is an international festival of contemporary dance which takes place from 10 to 18 March in Marrakech. This year's edition welcomes artists from Tunisia, Palestine, Burkina Faso, France, Belgium, Ivory Coast, Mali and Morocco.

"Since its creation in 2005, the Festival has aimed at a radical critique of the place of the body in Moroccan society through the integral promotion of dance, not just producing dance in front of the public, but truly aiming at a people's dance movement (....). We do not want to settle into a cruising rhythm, but rather to shake up the way we look at danced bodies." - Taoufiq Izeddiou, founder and director of the festival.

The festival is held in various cultural venues in the city: the French Institute of Marrakech, the Denise Masson house, the Jemaâ El Fna square, the Palmeraie museum, the Higher School of Visual Arts, the M'Art studio and the Meydene space, ...

Between performances, meetings, debates but also masterclasses, the event aims to be accessible and open to all so that everyone can appropriate "the danced body".

Among the novelties of this edition, there is the pre-Biennale of Dance in Africa, dance workshops, a forum focusing on dancing and the relationship with the danced body, the "Taklif" prize for young choreographers.

Photo : copyrights 2m.

The programme of the 24th edition of the Ismailia Documentary and Short Film Festival, which will take place from 14 to 20 March, has been unveiled, with the participation of some thirty countries, including Germany, which is the guest of honour of this year.

The jury is composed of Magid Movatsigye (Switzerland), Cécile Tulipolonsky (Germany), Koenig Hawally (Cuba) and Miss Darwazeh (Jordan).

Among the short fiction films in competition are:

• "Crocodiles Tears" - Egypt
• "Father's Footsteps" - Syria
• "Old Phone Number" - Saudi Arabia
• "The Driver" - Morocco
• "Transit" - Iraq

The Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication has announced the opening of applications for publishing and book projects. Project leaders will have until 3 April to submit their applications and be considered for financial support from the government.

Morocco is at the top of the overall ranking of the seventh edition of the competition. With 23 medals, Morocco is ahead of China and France. This championship was held from 9 to 11 March at the big stadium in Marrakech, under the high patronage of King Mohammed VI.

The group exhibition, originally entitled "Vécus de femmes", is held at the Anfa cultural complex in Casablanca, from 4 to 11 March, on the occasion of International Women's Rights Day. It welcomes eight women artists who question their perceptions of their sex both in society and in their own imagination. For example, artist Ammara Bouchentouf, an economist by training, proposes a work based on children's games, recalling through her installation her enthusiasm for the spinning top as well as for the doll as a little girl. No gender distinction was imposed on her during her childhood, allowing her to expand her horizons.

Photo: copyrights Quid.

This first edition of the festival takes place from 12 to 16 March in Rabat on the initiative of the Hiba Foundation and with the support of the Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication. The festival is held mainly at the Renaissance cinema and the coffe place"La Scène", but also in other venues in the capital city such as ISMAC, ISADAC and OnomoHotel.

In addition to screenings of short and feature films, the event also includes round tables, workshops and masterclasses in photography, sound and acting.

Several countries are present: Senegal, Rwanda, Burkina Faso, Uganda, Tanzania, Niger, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Côte d'Ivoire and Mauritius.

This cultural event is part of the "Rabat African Capital of Culture in 2022", placed under the high patronage of King Mohammed VI. Created in 2006 on the initiative of King Mohammed VI, the Hiba Foundation is a non-profit association that works to support creation, federate private initiatives, encourage talent, participate in the development of emerging arts and favour contemporary creations.

The full programme can be found on the following link http://www.renaissance.ma/

The historic monument will soon be rehabilitated. A call for tenders has been launched to select projects that respect the rehabilitation of the Kasbah using local materials and practices which respect the original construction of the monument.

The Kasbah of Chefchaouen is located on the Outa El-Hamman square, near the great mosque. It was built in 1471 by Rachid Ben Ali.

Photo : copyrights Le Guide du Routard.

The 28th edition of the Tetouan Mediterranean Film Festival has been won by a Turkish feature film. It tells the story of a refugee's journey across Anatolia to bring the body of his recently deceased wife back to his home country.

The festival also awarded the Azzedine Meddour prize to the film "Alam" by Palestinian director Firas Khoury.

Twelve feature films were in competition this year including the following Arab films:

• "Alam" by Firas Khoury (Palestine),
• "Goldfish" by Abdeslam Kelai (Morocco),
• "A summer in Boujad" by Omar Mouldouira (Morocco),
• "Nezouh" by Soudade Kaadan (Syria),
• "The Dam, Al Sadd" by Ali Cherri (Lebanon),
• "Riverbed" by Bassem Brèche (Lebanon).

The festival innovated this year with the "Tetouan Industry Days" programme, which allowed different actors of the film industry (directors, producers, distributors, etc.) to meet and share their experiences and future projects.

The festival also organised, from 3 to 6 March, a training course for 12 students from Moroccan film schools, who will analyse two short films with their directors.

Photo: "Cloves and carnations" by Bekir Bülbül.

A conference in posthumous tribute to the Moroccan scholar and thinker Abdellah Guennoun was organised in Rabat. 
This meeting, organised in collaboration with the Abdellah Guennoun Foundation for Culture and Scientific Research, was embellished with testimonies of literary, intellectual and academic personalities, highlighting the intellectual and literary contributions of the deceased which enriched Moroccan and Arab-Muslim libraries.

"This tribute is part of the implementation of the new structuring objectives of the Academy of the Kingdom, namely to encourage and develop scientific research, to celebrate the figures and personalities who have marked the national scene in various fields, and to explore the national memory and its intellectual contributions that illuminate the ways of advancement and development of Moroccan society" - the Permanent Secretary of the Academy of the Kingdom of Morocco, Abdeljalil Lahjomri.

The Moroccan boxer's victory over "Maquina", Mexican champion and two-time WBA & WBC challenger, came on a majority decision of the judges after 10 rounds of exchanges. This fifteenth victory allows the boxer from Tangier to integrate the world ranking of the International Boxing Federation.

The Saudi Royal Court has announced the death of Princess Al-Jawhara bint Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud.

The town hall of the 6th arrondissement will host this African book fair from 17 to 19 March 2023. Guinea will be the guest of honour this year and a tribute will be paid to Nelson Mandela on the tenth anniversary of his death, as well as to the writer and director Ousmane Sembène who would have turned 100 this year.

More than 200 authors and 60 publishers and booksellers are taking part. The event includes meetings with various authors as well as conferences on African literature. Exhibitions and performances are also planned.

The month of theatre started on 11 March with the slogan "Alloula and the young" in homage to playwright Abdelkader Alloula who died twenty-nine years ago. The programme opened with the play "Chahid Errok'h" (the martyr of the stage) directed and written by Mohamed Mihoubi, which looks back at the playwright's artistic career and some key moments of his plays.

The programme, which coincides with International Theatre Day, includes round tables and debates, as well as several performances by young theatre enthusiasts.

Photo: Oran theatre, copyright Wikipedia.

The eleventh edition of the festival opened in Algiers on 9 March and will continue until 13 March. It will be attended by troupes from Algeria, Italy, the United Kingdom, France and Russia. Mali is the guest of honour at the festival.

The first performance of this opening night was given by dancers from the Arabesque troupe of the Algiers Opera Ballet, under the artistic direction of Fatma Zohra Senouci. Conferences and masterclasses will be part of this cultural event. 

Photo: the Malian national ballet, copyrights APS.

The photographer grew up in the wilaya of Annaba. He won the first prize in the fifth edition of the photography show, organised by the Mohamed-Chebouki House of Culture in Tébessa.

The Instagram account of Yacine Mehdi Magoura is https://www.instagram.com/yacine_el_mehdi/

Playwright and university researcher Ahmed Hamoumi died in Oran. Specialised in the Algerian theatrical movement, he contributed to its influence through writing and translation.

Under the patronage of Yasmina Chellali, the event was an opening onto the richness and creativity of Algerian fashion.

The event offered meetings with various designers such as :

• Rym Menaifi, founder of Menouba Couture, who has been painting, embroidering and making outfits since her childhood.
• Amor Guellil, winner of the "Fashion Star" show in 2018 and of the "Best haute couture creation between the two shores Algeria/France" in 2013.
• Hania Zazoua, co-founder of the magazine Brokk'Art.

A fashion show by designer Yasmina Chellali and the screening of "The Last Queen" by Damien Ounouri and Adila Bendimerad concluded the event.

Photo: copyrights Yasmina Couture.

The Algerian cartoonist and drawer Nadjib Berber died. Known for his satirical caricatures, he was the author of two comic books.

Photo: copyrights The Markaz Review.

For her first pop art exhibition, Thanina has chosen to come back and honour Algeria's African and Amazigh roots. The series on display features some forty paintings, which the artist began in 2019. Mixing characters from ancient Egypt, African masks, and Amazigh symbols, the exhibition aims to represent a rainbow Algeria.

Photo: copyrights Algeria 360.

The 21st edition of the festival ended on Sunday 12 March with a prize-giving ceremony which rewarded Meriem Othmani and Oussema Nebil, who became "Micro d'Or" and won the Tunisian Television Prize for the song "Nghanni". The jury was chaired by Adnen Chaouachi.

The event was notably marked by the evening of 10 March which paid tribute to the memory of Ali Riahi and Saliha.

Photo: copyrights AA.

Tunis hosts a new group exhibition featuring fifteen Iraqi artists, including eight visual artists, six ceramists and a sculptor. This event is part of the Iraqi week of plastic arts taking place from 10 to 15 March at the National Museum of Modern Art in Tunis, in partnership with the National Centre of Ceramic Art Sidi Kacem El Jellizi.

The artists in question are Mourad Brahim, Taha Hanash, Ziad Ghazi, Sabah Ahmed, Watham Mahdi, Saad Al Ani, Qasim Nayef, Haidar Raouf, Mathni Abbas, Sheniar Abdullah, Ali Reda, Mohamed Ghassen, Hassan Ibrahim, Turath Amin and Tahsseen Zidi.

Ceramic workshops are organised from 9 to 15 March at the Sidi Kacem Jelizi National Ceramic Centre. The ceramic frescoes created by all the artists will be presented on Wednesday 15 March, in addition to a debate session in the presence of the artists.

The event will be followed by the Carthage Contemporary Art Days from 26 to 30 May.

Photo : copyrights TAP.

This fourth edition takes place from 11 to 18 March in Tunis and in several regions of the country. Its theme is "Puppets, Art and Life". Spain is the guest of honour of this edition and five Spanish shows are planned. Participating countries include Algeria, Egypt, France, Italy, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Poland, Greece, the United Kingdom, Austria, Brazil and Tunisia. Thirty-one shows are planned, including twenty-seven for children.

The exhibition takes place on the occasion of the National Day of the Tunisian Traditional Dress, from 16 March to 21 April, in Tunis at Mooja Studio I Gallery. The event shows a private collection of ceremonial costumes and female finery.

This exhibition offers an eclectic selection of 173 works including paintings, ceramics, sculptures and photographs. It is curated by Nizar Meghdiche. A tribute was paid to four Tunisian artists on the occasion of the opening: Fatma Samet, Alia El Kateb, Abdelhamid Hajjem and Hatem Gharbi.

Three other exhibitions of the Union of Tunisian Visual Artists will take place at the Yahia Gallery at the Palmarium, the Ben Arous Arts Gallery and the Sainte-Croix municipal cultural space in the Medina of Tunis.

This exhibition is part of the celebration of the twelfth edition of the national month of plastic arts which is held from March 10 to April 30, 2023 in several galleries in Greater Tunis.

Photo: copyrights Tekiano.

The Institute of Interdisciplinary Research Man-Society of the University of Rouen Normandy, in partnership with the Academy of Normandy, the French Institute of Tunisia, the Alliance française of Normandy, the Association Baraques Walden, organizes from 13 to 17 March 2023 the international "Semaine de la Francophonie".

"Tunisia being the country which was at the origin of the Arab Spring and which hosted the XVIIIth Summit of the Francophonie in Djerba, in 2022, we wanted, while celebrating the "Semaine de la Francophonie", to focus on the situation of the French language in the country of Habib Bourguiba, one of the emblematic figures and one of the founding fathers of the institutional Francophonie, 23 years after his death." - Foued Laroussi, director of the Institut de Recherche Interdisciplinaire Homme-Société at the University of Rouen Normandie.

This "Semaine de la Francophonie" includes conferences, exhibitions, concerts, film screenings and symposiums. The show "My Weavings" by Wafa Ghorbel (academic, novelist and singer-songwriter) and pianist Mehdi Trabelsi promises to be the highlight of the week. The concert promises famous songs, mainly in French and in Arabic. The screening of the critically acclaimed film "Arab Blues" by Manele Labidi is also scheduled.

"La Semaine de la Francophonie" also happens in Tunisia, with a French-speaking film week scheduled from 13 to 18 March, screening fourteen films, including Tunisian ones.

Algerian artist exhibits in Tunis after an international tour in New York, Nottingham, Paris, Toronto and Algiers. The artist's solo exhibition will be held from 16 March to 20 May at the B7L9 Art Station of the Kamel Lazaar Foundation. This is the artist's first show in Tunisia.

The title of the exhibition "Tassili" refers to "Tassili N'Ajjer", a mountainous site in the central Sahara desert, which extends over 72,000 km² in south-eastern Algeria. This site is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The artist's work focuses not only on this heritage site, but also on spirituality, colonialism and migration.

Photo: Lydia Ourahmane, Tassili, 2022, installation view, Lydia Ourahmane: Tassili, SculptureCenter, New York, 2022. Copyrights Charles Benton.

An official ceremony was held on March 8 at the headquarters of the Ministry of Cultural Affairs in the Kasbah on the occasion of the return of thirty archaeological coins dating from the Carthaginian era. The Norwegian government representative affirmed his country's full readiness to support common efforts to fight against the phenomenon of trafficking in cultural goods.

Photo: copyrights Réalités.

The Alliance Française de Tunis, in partnership with the Montreux Comedy Festival, launches the second edition of the French humour festival "Normal Enti?" in Tunis on 16 and 17 March.

The event aims at bringing the public together through humour and encouraging Tunisian youth to take the stage. Some talents to discover: Imen Lahmar, Alexandre Komineck, or Gaëtan Delferière.

Visual artist and former director of the National Public Museum of Decoration, Miniature and Calligraphy, Mustafa Belkahla, died in Algiers at the age of 74.

The dance show features Roger Assaf and Hanane Hajj Ali, two pillars of the Lebanese theatre, two actors, two lovers and two partners. Both dance the love for Beirut, a city they know from every angle and especially at the height of its fragility. The live music is by Abd Kobeyssi.

"The generation of our parents, mine and others. They were born and will close their eyes in this city to which they have given everything, in this country they love and which today offers them nothing in return, no security, financial or otherwise, and where they lack the minimum of life. A city that is constantly falling apart, and their dreams of a peaceful end to their days there with it. All these parents abandoned by the children who have gone to seek happiness elsewhere and for whom there is no hope left... " - interview of choreographer Ali Chahrour, for the media L'Orient-le-Jour.

To be seen at the al-Madina theatre in Hamra until 12 March.

Photo: Hanane Hajj Ali and Roger Assaf for "Iza hawa" by Ali Chahrour. Copyrights Léa Skayem.

Corine Shawi's "Perhaps what I fear does not exist" premiered at a festival in Beirut in 2022, before being selected in official competition at the "Dok Leipzig" festival. Subsequently screened at the Arab Film Festival in San Francisco, it participates now in the Beirut Women Film Festival.

Without being a fiction or a documentary, the film, in which the members of the director's family play, questions human relationships when facing death.

"I wanted to film my father's daily life, confined to bed, and then focus on each of the people around him. It was either in the hospital itself or in the car where my brothers and sisters would confess to me and share their anxiety. - Corine Shawi for L'Orient-le-Jour.

The Lebanese writer won the prize for her book "Night Blue", published by Sabine Wespieder. The award is given to the best book dealing with the theme of borders from among a selection of ten books. The jury praised Dima Abdallah's "delicate examination of geographical, psychological, social and sensory borders, as well as the difficulty of finding one's place in the streets of Paris and in a violent society".

Born in Lebanon in 1977, Dima Abdallah has lived in Paris since 1989. Her first novel, "Weeds", also published by Sabine Wespieser in 2020, was very well received and won a special mention from the jury of the Lagardère Foundation and the Arab World Institute's Arab Literature Prize, as well as the Adelf's France-Lebanon Prize.

The conference "Architecture and Urbanism in Lebanon. Female Pioneers" organised in the framework of the Beirut Art Film Festival allowed to discover the career of four inspiring Lebanese architects.

• Simone Kosremelli: trained at the American University of Beirut, she completed her doctoral studies at Columbia University of New York. In 1979, she worked on the reconstruction plan of Beirut within the team of Pierre el-Khoury, Assaad Raad and Khalil Khouri, and then worked in various architectural offices as a freelancer. She founded her own office in 1981 and became the first woman architect to have her own business in the field of architecture in Lebanon, in the midst of the civil war. In 1990, she opened a branch in Abu Dhabi and designed villas in the Gulf countries.
• Nouha Ghossaini: she graduated in architecture from the Lebanese University. She has a doctorate in urban and regional planning from the University of Paris-Sorbonne in 1989, and a diploma in architecture of public spaces and green spaces from the National Superior School of Architecture of Versailles. President of the council of the municipality of Baakline and of the federation of the council of municipalities of Chouf es-Souayjani from 2004 and 2016, she became the first woman to be appointed dean of the faculty of fine arts and architecture of the Lebanese University where she has been teaching since 1992. She quickly became involved in the preservation of Lebanon's natural heritage with the construction of decentralised cooperatives and neighbourhood committees.
• Anastasia Elrouss: she studied at the Faculty of Architecture at the American University of Beirut, where she currently teaches design. She first worked at Jean nouvel before taking over the direction of the studio Youssef Tohme Architects and Associates. She contributed to the architectural and urban redevelopment of Brazza in Bordeaux, to the design of a 120-unit housing block in Nantes and to the Museum for Modern and Contemporary Art in Bucharest, Romania. In 2017, she founded her own agency, ANA-Anastasia Elrouss Architects, whose projects have won several awards: the Iconic Award and the German Design Award; the Architizer Award and the Design that Educates Awards.
• Sophie Akoury: she is an architecture student at the Southern California Institute of Architecture. Sophie Akoury won an award for her final year project in which she creates a parallel between the Los Angeles River and the Beirut River.

On the occasion of International Women's Day, the United Nations Development Programme and the European Union are organising "Her Voice, Her Power" in Beit Beirut, an exhibition financed by USAID, which will showcase the talents of Lebanese women artists from 9 to 11 March. The photographs of Fadia Ahmad, Rania Matar and Carla Henoud are on display, as are the ceramics of Andrea Nassart and Najwa Nahas. Works by Caleen Ladki, Diala Yafi, Haibat Balaa Bawab, Louma Rabah and Nevine Mattar are also present alongside those of Fantine Samaha, Layla Dagher, Marie Jo Kai, Paula Chahine, Shermine Yafi, Vanessa Damous, Francesca Matta, Marie-Noelle Fattal, Carole Ingea, Lina Husseini, Myrna Maalouf and Nayla Kai Saroufim.

Photo: "Break in", Fadia Ahmad, 2022.

This programme run by Beirut Chants and funded by the US Embassy aims to address the lack of music teachers in Lebanon, but also to provide free music education to Lebanese youth. The teaching technique is different: it aims to bring together all talents, regardless of age or discipline.

El-Sistema was founded in 1975 in Venezuela by José-Antonio Abreu. An economist and musician by training, he managed to bring together a dozen teenagers in a garage in Caracas. The rhythm of the symphonies then spread to the slums. Today, more than 700,000 musicians in 375 academic centres around the world owe their training to El-Sistema.

The works of artist Mansour el-Habre generally present a space made up of coloured and torn forms, scattered forms that get tangled and intertwined. The Lebanese artist's abstract paintings can be seen at Art on 56th Gallery until 18 March.

Since 1993, El Habre has participated in solo and group exhibitions in his hometown, Geneva, London, Greece, Canada, Paris, Washington, Kuwait, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Qatar. He was also invited by the Lebanese Ministry of Culture to participate in the International Printmaking Triennial in Rodeos, Greece, in 2008.

Photo: "The Unforgettable", 2022, Mansour el Habre.

The exhibition at the Beirut-based Tanit Gallery features the work of Elias Nafaa and the duo Laetitia Hakim and Tarek Haddad. This exhibition brings together two sets of works that explore the interplay between power and loss, drawing on both personal and collective experiences.

In "To Fight Against a Stone" by Laetitia Hakim and Tarek Haddad, the paradox of power is examined in order to understand the dynamics of social systems.

In "To the memory of my roots", Elias Nafaa explores and questions grief. In the rubble of a fire that ravaged his native land and after the death of his grandfather, he flees traditional mourning, but cannot escape the rites that give rhythm to society.

Photo: "The Fall 1" (part of diptych), 2023, Elias Nafaa.

Gallery owner Saleh Barakat and artist Alfred Tarazi will discuss the panorama of modern Palestinian heritage in painting on 17 March at Dar el Nimer in the Lebanese capital. Tarazi will also present and analyse his artistic works related to Palestine.

Alfred Tarazi is a Lebanese artist. His work ranges from painting, photography, drawing, collage, sculpture and installation, and revolves around complex historical investigations of the ultimate horizon of the events of the Lebanese civil war.

Saleh Barakat is a Lebanese art expert, curator and owner of Agial Gallery and Saleh Barakat Gallery.

Between the latest fashion weeks and the 95th Oscars ceremony, the Arab world has a front row seat.

While Elie Saab dressed American actress Monica Barbaro, British model Cara Delevingne, and actress Miranda Kerr for the Oscars, it was Zuhair Murad who was behind the outfits of Eva Longoria and Christine Diane Teigen.

During the last fashion weeks, Palestinian model Gigi Hadid walked the runway in Los Angeles for Versace, quickly joined by Moroccan models Nora Attal and Imaan Hammam. Nora Attal was also at the Paris Chanel show with Loli Bahia, also spotted at the Louis Vuitton show.

Also, it is impossible to forget about the success of the new season of "Next in Fashion" on Netflix, in which Gigi Hadid remains the star and staring her sister and supermodel Bella Hadid as a guest. Her presence highly contributed to the success of the ratings.

Finally, to conclude this week, auction house Sotheby's announced the launch of a special sale, its first ever jewellery sale this month with Lebanese designer Nadine Ghosn.

Picture: Hadid sisters, copyrights Mike Coppola.

Composer, pianist and bandleader Leïla Olivesi was awarded the Django-Reinhardt Prize by the Jazz Academy on Sunday, becoming the sixth woman to receive this award in the nearly 70 years of its existence.

In November, she released the album "Astral", with an orchestra of ten musicians.

The AlUla Film Commission announces the launch of a platform for female filmmakers to produce stories set in the AlUla region: AlUla Creates.

The first phase of the programme includes a partnership with the British Fashion Council, Saudi actress Mila al-Zahrani, Kloss Films founder Alec Maxwell and fashion icons Helena Christensen and Eva Herzigova, who will support the platform's long-term mission.

AlUla Creates is part of the government's strategy to develop a film-friendly ecosystem in the AlUla region, with digital creation companies and studios.

Photo: copyrights Royal Commission for AlUla.

After the success and the César for the best first film in 2020 for "Papicha", Mounia Meddour returns to the forefront with the feature film "Houria" starring the actress Lyna Khoury, awarded the César for the best female hopeful the same year.

The story of this new feature film also centres on a young Algerian dancer whose life is turned upside down after an attack by a self-proclaimed repentant Islamist. Now mute, she tries to rebuild her life through dance.

"Through the character of Houria, I am talking about Algeria, a country that has been wounded, hurt, but which has its youth and resources to continue to stand up" - Mounia Meddour for Arab News.

As part of the Francophonie week, a large-scale concert was held in the AlUla region, which was the subject of a special programme, "Under the Stars of AlUla". Several leading artists participated, both French and Arab. Egyptian mezzo-soprano Farrah El Dibany was among them, as well as Saudi stars Aseel Abu Baker, Ayed Youssef from "Besm Al Elah" and Dalia Mubarak the folk singer from "Areen Al Ashq", "Ya Monyati" and "Maa Khaled Al Shwaq".

The 95-minute event will be broadcast on 24 March on TV5 MONDE at 9pm.

Photo: copyrights The Royal Commission of AlUla.

Three bells cast in Normandy were rung on Tuesday, in the presence of Unesco Director General Audrey Azoulay, in Mosul, a metropolis in northern Iraq where heritage jewels are being rebuilt after the exactions of the jihadist group Islamic State. This operation is part of the "Reviving the Spirit of Mosul" initiative, which is behind several projects to restore churches, the al-Nuri mosque, etc.

The bells are now in the convent of Notre-Dame de l'Heure, replacing those of the past, which had been donated in the 19th century by the Empress Eugénie.

"It is a symbol of the return to peace, a link with history, but also a symbol of hope for the future" - Audrey Azoulay.

Photo: with Father Olivier Poquillon, the Director General of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay, visited the convent of Notre-Dame-de-l'Heure in Mosul. Copyrights Abdullah Rashid / Reuters.

The Iraqi-Canadian singer - born in Yemen, raised in Abu Dhabi before emigrating to Toronto - is set to perform at the Wireless Festival Middle East, twenty years after he and his family arrived in the UAE capital. Ali Gatie has ten million listeners and a hit song that has been played over a billion times on TikTok, "It's You", released in 2019.

The twenty-eight year old starts her tour in London and will finish in Los Angeles in mid-May. On her way: France, Canada, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands.

This play directed by Saudi Arabian Lana Komsany tackles the taboos that women face on a daily basis in Saudi Arabia. Grief, violence, rape, motherhood, ... No subject is spared. The play is being performed at the Hayy Jameel Theatre in Jeddah on the occasion of International Women's Rights Day.

"I have been trying to put on this play for four years. In 2023, it was time to bring it to life." - Lana Komsany for Arab News.

The stories told on stage have all been experienced, either by Lana Komsany or by other Saudi women.

Signed by the executive director of Arts AlUla, Nora Aldabal, and the president of the Centre Pompidou, Laurent Le Bon, the agreement aims to create a major regional cultural venue of the 21st century. The future museum will house a collection of contemporary art from the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia, with immersive installations by international artists.

The architecture of the museum is currently designed as a bridge between Eastern and Western cultures, with several pavilions and gardens.

Signed in the presence of Prince Badr bin Farhan, Saudi Minister of Culture and Governor of the RCU, and French Minister of Culture Rima Abdul Malak , the agreement is the latest in an exponential list for the Royal Commission for AlUla - which already has partnerships with the Louvre, the Misk Art Institute, the Deutsches Archaologisches Institut,...

Photo: Arts AlUla Executive Director Nora Aldabal signs an agreement with Centre Pompidou President Laurent Le Bon in the presence of Prince Badr bin Farhan, Saudi Minister of Culture and Governor of the Royal Commission for AlUla, and French Minister of Culture Rima Abdul Malak. Photo: Royal Commission for AlUla

The new exhibition at the MiZa cultural space, located near the Mina Zayed port in Abu Dhabi, looks back at the history of air conditioning in the United Arab Emirates, and how it has become an indispensable tool in changing the way people live and relate to the outside world.

The works all share a different perspective:

• Hussain AlMoosawi's photographs (United Arab Emirates) highlight the architectural qualities of buildings with generators;
• A short film by Fatema Al Fardan (United Arab Emirates) traces the impact of the first air conditioners on the daily lives of the inhabitants;
• a series of photographs by photographer Ahmed Al Kuwaiti (Bahrain) tells of street life with these ubiquitous generators;
• …

Photo: AlMoosawi's artwork for the exhibition. Copyrights Victor Besa / The National.

London-based brand Qasimi collaborates with students from the University of Sharjah on a pop-up store created especially for the Sharjah Biennale. The students worked closely with the brand and built the interior space and furniture for the shop, which hosts Qasimi's spring/summer 2023 collection.

The collection is inspired by the nomadic Tuareg people, as well as the people of the Sahrawi and Sahelian regions of North Africa. With clean, uncluttered lines, the brand continues to celebrate the 'outsiders' who defy norms. The clothing line also features elements of the Gulf with wavering patterns reminding us of pearl fishermen. Also, the dove taken by Omani photographer Tariq Al Hajri is a pattern that one can find throughout the collection.

The Qasimi brand is now run by Sheikha Hoor Al Qasimi, daughter of Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, ruler of Sharjah, and sister of the late Sheikh Khalid Al Qasimi, who founded the label. The pop-up store can be found at the Sharjah Biennale until 11 June.

Photo: copyrights Qasimi.

Operating as an incubator, Qumra is set to support thirteen local projects by Qatari and Qatar-based filmmakers. The talents associated with these projects participate in mentoring and networking activities from 10-15 March and online from 19-21 March.

The selected films are the following:

• "The Other Wife by Meriem Mesraoua (Algeria, France, Qatar)
• "The Myth of Mahmoud" by Mayar Hamdan (Palestine, Qatar)
• "Bel Falstini" by Obada Jarbi (Lebanon, Qatar)
• "17-0: The Untold Story" by Fatma Al-Ghanim (Qatar)
• "This I Remember" by Alessandra El Chanti (Qatar, Lebanon)
• "I Wished for Solitude" by Hamad Alfayhani (Qatar)
• "Missed Connections" by Dhoha Abdelsattar (Qatar)
• "Holy Feet" by Karim Emara (USA, Egypt, Qatar)
• "Alaqiq: Darkness of Media" by Mohammed A. Al-Suwaidi (Qatar)
• "Continuity" by Nadia Al-Khater (Qatar)
• "Beauty in Solace" by Ali Al-Hajri (Qatar)
• "Gihan" by Hadeer Omar (Egypt, Qatar)
• "Villa 187" by Eiman Mirghani (Sudan, Qatar).

More details on https://bit.ly/3TtyiMF

Photo: "Alaqiq: Darkness of Media" by Mohammed A. Al-Suwaidi.

At the Maghreb Film Festival in Haarlem, which ended on 12 March in the Netherlands, Raouf Sebbahi's Moroccan feature film "The Oasis of Frozen Waters" won Best Director Award.

Moroccan cinema also won Jury Prize for "The Women of Pavilion J" by Mohammed Nadif; and Best Actor Award for Saad Mouaffak's performance in "The Slave" by Abdelilah Eljaouhary.

Maghreb cinema won numerous awards at the festival which ended on 4 March.

Tunisia won five prizes in total. The feature film category saw the consecration of "Ashkal", directed by the Tunisian Youssef Chebbi, which won the Yennenga Golden Stallion, as well as the prize for Best Sound. The director Lotfi Achour also received a prize in the short documentary category for his film "Blind Spot".

Other distinguished Tunisian creations were "Under the fig trees" by Erige Sehiri, whose cast received the prize for best female and male performance in a feature film, and "Kendila" by Nadia Rais, which received the first prize for short animation.

Algerian cinema also shone and won three prizes, starting with the film "Guardian of the Worlds" by Leïla Chaïbi which won the Golden Stallion in the feature documentary category, and "Soula" by Salah Isaâd which won the Oumarou Ganda prize for the best first or second feature film.

Finally, Moroccan director Maryam Touzani received the Best Screenplay Award for her film "The Blue Caftan".

Photo: « The Blue Caftan » by Maryam Touzani.

The visual artist presents his personal exhibition at the Orfali gallery in Amman until March 20. His work proposes a portrait of humanity, celebrating the future generation carried by women and represented by their children. The specificity of his paintings lies in the use of sand. The issues of transmission between generations, and the one of occupied Palestine are key to understand his art.

After eight years, the Syrian band is back on the scene with the track "Ya Saket", available on all online listening platforms and with a video clip on YouTube. The album features eight tracks and eight different stories, all of them carried by the band members: musician and founder Bisher King Abu Saleh, singer Haneen Ayoub and guitarist and keyboardist Bassem Al-Safadi.

Under the patronage of Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmed Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, the 28th session of the Qurain Cultural Festival opened in Kuwait and runs until 15 March. Created in 1994, it has become a key event in the country's cultural agenda. While singers from the region - such as Abdul Rab Idris, Fatuma, Khaled bin Hussein, Fahd Al-Salem and Dalal Al-Dulaimi - are invited, artists from all over the world are also present (Turkey, Bulgaria, Mexico, Italy, Mongolia, etc.). A tribute to the Kuwaiti singer Ahmad AlShargawi is planned.

The ninth edition of the festival offers to discover Palestinian cinema through twenty-eight screenings, meetings and debates held in various places of the pink city, and thus until March 14.

Among the twenty-eight scheduled movies, Maha Hajj's new fiction film "Mediterranean Fever" explores the twists and turns of a problematic friendship between two Palestinians in Israel. Maryse Gargour's documentary "A talk with remarkable people" looks at the origins of the current situation in the Middle East and re-explains the past to better understand the present. Hani Abu Assad, in "Huda's Trap", takes us into the drama of many Palestinians forced to choose between collaborating with Israel or betraying their country.

Other participants such Roland Nurier (France), Mohammed Diab (Egypt) or Eyal Sivan (Israel) bring an outside point of view on the situation lived by Palestinians.

Cette nouvelle autorité est constituée de dix-neuf membres, tous élus pour un mandat de deux ans, qui se réuniront deux fois par an à Sharjah. Les membres sélectionnés à ce jour sont : Rafik Ali Ahmed (Liban), Fatih Abdel Rahman (Palestine), Ajaj Selim (Syrie), Khaled Jalal (Egypte), Jabbar Judy (Irak), Hayel Al Madhabi (Yémen), Hazaa Al Barari (Jordanie), Saeed Al Siyabi (Oman), Hassan Rashid (Qatar), Mohammed Mansour (Koweït), Habib Ghuloom (EAU), Sami Al-Jamaan (Arabie Saoudite), Saeed Youssef (Soudan), Ezzedine Boutiet (Maroc), Moez Al-Murabit (Tunisie), Mohamed Boukras (Algérie), Ali Al-Falah (Libye), Abdel-Fattah Soleil (Mauritanie), Youssef Al-Hamdan  (Bahreïn).

Palestinian-Jordanian poet Samih al-Sharif passed away. In addition to his poetic writings, he participated in the creation of the Jordanian Writers' Union.

The Supreme Council for Culture announced that Egyptian writer Ibrahim Farghali and Palestinian author Hassan Hamid are the winners of the Naguib Mahfouz Prize for Fiction.

Ibrahim Farghali won the prize for the best Egyptian novel with his book "The Train Reader". Hassan Hamid won the prize for the best Arab novel with his work "Nagogi Al-Saghir".

More than one hundred candidates applied, including ninety from Egypt.

Entitled "Human Screen Festival", the event was held from 4 to 8 March in Tunis, Tozeur, Gabes, Kasserine, and Mahdia. The event aims to promote the values and principles of human rights, encourage artistic creativity and cultural diversity, and raise public awareness of the importance of human rights and social justice.

This year's festival featured the screening of thirty-seven films from sixteen countries under the theme "Women, Peace and Security", workshops, panel discussions, concerts, exhibitions, and activities for children.

The jury for the feature film competition was chaired by Tunisian academic Lamia Giga. The main winners were:

• Best Feature Documentary: "The Guardians of Margoum" by Akram Moncer (Tunisia)
• Best narrative feature film: "Migrants" by Masoud Ahmadi (Iran).

Photo: "Migrants" by Masoud Ahmadi.

The city of Fez, at the Sheikh Ahmed Art Centre, is hosting the exhibition "History of a Siege" until 11 March, which is an event dedicated to the blockade of Gaza.

The exhibition included photos and paintings by Palestinian photographers, painters and journalists which reflect Palestinian lives, their suffering and resilience.

The Omani writer's novel "Bitter Orange Tree" continues to be successful, having been named best book of the year by "Time Magazine" and "The New Yorker". It has now been shortlisted for the Dublin Literary Award.

Jokha Alharthi is the first Omani woman author whose novel has been translated into English. The same novel, Heavenly Bodies, also won the Man Booker International Prize, as well as the Lagardère Foundation and Arab World Institute Prize for Arabic Literature. Jokha Alharthi is the author of two previous collections of short stories, a children's book and three novels in Arabic. Fluent in English, she completed a PhD in classical Arabic poetry in Edinburgh and teaches at Sultan Qaboos University in Muscat. She was shortlisted for the Sahikh Zayed Award for Young Writers and her short stories have been published in English, German, Italian, Korean and Serbian.

Stal Gallery Young and Emerging Artists Prize (YEAP) is an annual programme of the Omani gallery Stal which supports young emerging Omani artists aged 18-35 to develop their creative careers.

The programme provides access to training, mentoring and an artistic residency abroad.

This year's grand prize was won by Kawthar Al Harthy whose conceptual work won over the jury.

The selected artists were: Salim Al Masoudi, Bashair Al Balushi, Israa Al Balushi, Huria Al Harrasi, Marwa Al Bahrani, Khadija Al Maamari and Ammar Al Kiyumi.

This year, eight performances are in the running for the Sharjah Theatre Days Awards, which will run until 20 March. There will be fourteen performances from various theatre groups and associations across the country. The opening of the festival coincided with the presentation of the Sharjah Theatre Days Award by the Ruler of Sharjah, Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, to Bahraini actor Mohammed Yassin, for the "Sharjah Prize for Arab Theatrical Creativity".

The jury for the 32nd edition of Sharjah Theatre Days was announced with Dr Mashhur Mustafa (Lebanon) as chairman, accompanied by Walid Al Zaabi (UAE), Mohammed Khair Al Rifai (Jordan) and by Adil Hassan and Rasha Abdil Muni'm (Egypt).

On 14 March, a forum entitled "Theatre and the Environment" is planned, with the participation of researchers and playwrights from several Arab countries. 

The Sheikh Ibrahim bin Mohammed Al Khalifa Center for Culture and Research, in cooperation with the Association for the Revival of the Palestinian Camp, organises the exhibition "Revival" in the House of Poetry. This event is part of the Spring of Culture. Historical Palestinian embroidery is featured in this exhibition.

The Syrian fortress of Saladin has withstood numerous assaults, but its stone ramparts were badly weakened by the 6 February earthquake. Spared from the civil war that has ravaged the country since 2011, Saladin's fortress remained open to visitors until the earthquake that killed over 55,000 people in Syria and Turkey. The earthquake damaged 40 archaeological and historical sites across Syria, according to the General Directorate of Antiquities and Museums.

Photo: Saladin's fortress in Al-Haffah, 7 March 2023. Copyrights Louai Beshara / AFP.

The Omani poet is the first Arab woman to win the competition, taking home one million dirhams (United Arab Emirates). Born in Nizwa, she is the author of three books of poetry, including "The Sea Changes Dress".

The Abu Dhabi TV talent show "Prince of Poets", created in 2007, had five finalists from the Sultanate of Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Morocco and Senegal.

It is called "Catastrophe" and is scheduled to be launched on 15 March. The directors of this project are Lebanese illustrators and cartoonists Karen Keyrouz and Nour Hifaoui Fakhoury. Eighteen artists are participating: Tracy Chahwan, Ghadi Ghosn, Balsam Abo Zour, Rawand Issa, Georges Torbey-Sbete, Barrack Rima, Jana Traboulsi, Carla Aouad, Yara Asmar, Muriele Honein, Hussein Nakhal, Sandra Ghosn, Nader Bahsoun, Joseph Kai, Carla Habib, Shakeeb Abu Hamda, and of course Nour Hifaoui and Karen Keyrouz.

Samandal is a collective created in 2007 by Léna Merhej, Omar Khouri, Hatem Imam, Tarek Nabaa and Fadi Baqi. This quarterly magazine encourages artists to create comics. The magazine is participatory, and the three languages spoken in Lebanon - Arabic, French and English - have their place. Over the years, it has brought together a large number of young illustrators from the Arab world, but also from Belgium, France, Brazil, Bulgaria, Serbia, Canada and the United States. It now has around 120 artists. The collective was awarded the Alternative Comics Prize at the 2019 Angoulême International Comics Festival.

"Turning a new leaf". Wouldn’t it be a dream on the aftermath of this new year? To leave behind past failures, forget about old wounds, omit your faux pas and turn into a better version of yourself, a “You” 3.0 which would be embraced by Instagram and liked billions of times?

"We carry a story in spite of ourselves. Nevertheless, we are free to move forward and turn this heritage into a strength." - Zoulikha Bouabdellah.

The exhibition tackles our relationship towards our body and its freedom. Yesterday as today, the body remains entangled in norms, which hinder our movements, thoughts and capabilities. To better apprehend this exhibition, here are some keys to guide you through Zoulikha’s art pieces.

Accepting one’s heritage. Zoulikha Bouabdellah has decided to use a very specific material to draw her body shapes: rice paper. However, in addition of being a medium, this Japanese paper has become a material itself, becoming a full and major part of Zoulikha’s work. Indeed, rice paper gorged itself with colours, easily wrinkles, scatters or get torn. Shifting into skin, it forms dimples and furrows, becoming the container and the content of the artist's drawings. Like a body, the rice paper changes, evolves, and lives with its past marks and experiences.

“Fragile and powerful at the same time, rice paper resists and can rip in a second. Working with it is an ongoing challenge. If I enjoyed using it as a canvas, it was very interesting to see it with fresh eyes and consider it as a full material of my work.”

Reinventing past tales. Founding myths are omnipresent in the work displayed by the artist, who was lucky enough to grow up in the corridors of Algiers’ Museum of Fine Arts, immersing herself at a very early age in the Greco-Roman mythology which is at the roots of art history.

However, the artist's bucolic canvases are only of apparent lightness. The drawings’ red ink and the pins on her collages lead to another interpretation. "It is necessary to question mythology through the prism of today’s reality. The heroic portray we use to have of Zeus is obsolete when considering his character in modern times. He is nothing else than a rapist who constantly invents terrible stratagems to trap his victims. The colour red certainly evokes passion but also violence. I wanted to show that this association, between desire and violence, could be broken. It is possible to dissociate the two in order to change our relationship with our body.”

Ending patriarchy. In the diptych "The Menders" (in French: 'Les Raccommodeuses'), Zoulikha Bouabdellah presents two women repairing, with needles and thread, two men's injured bodies. "Women rarely have a position of power in Western art. I decided to flip this relationship and to inverse the power balance between men and women in 'The Menders'. In the diptych, the woman is in charge, both intellectually and physically. She is the one deciding to repair and fix these two men.”

In "Dreams of Trespass: Tales of a Harem Girlhood", Fatima Mernissi explains women's servitude as a catalyzer, pushing them to fight for their emancipation. In the same way, Zoulikha Bouabdellah considers the female body as the key to absolute freedom, which can only be conquered by women. "Only those who are burnt by fire can cry out" says the artist.

***

This exhibition reveals her first love, drawing, which she decided to highlight for the first time. It also puts the emphasis on her struggles, strongly advocating for a feminist world where the body can freely and peacefully express itself. The exhibition is held at the Parisian gallery Lilia Ben Salah until March 18.

Zoulikha Bouabdellah is a French-Algerian visual artist and video maker born in 1977. She lives and works between Paris and Casablanca. Her work has been awarded numerous prizes: Abraaj Capital Art Prize, Prix Meurice for Contemporary Art, Villa Medicis Hors les Murs. Her art pieces are exhibited in various private and public collections in Europe, Africa, the Middle East and the United States.

Photo : « Fusion », 2022, series « Worried Sick », Zoulikha Bouabdellah.