Qatari Artist Encourages Others to Find Freedom in Their Work
Art was a saving presence for the multidisciplinary artist Ameera AlAji in her youth. Now she hopes to inspire a new generation of Qatari artists to find a similar freedom.
Crime Fiction From the Maghreb: Not So Hidden After All
Who says the genre barely exists in the region? A little detective work turns up plenty of fictional bodies in the libraries of western North Africa.
Young Art Executive Has a Key Role in Qatar’s Public Art Scene
As the Qatar Foundation’s senior art specialist, Layla Bacha manages an art portfolio that includes major public artworks and museum collections.
Making Prisons Visible: The Work of the MENA Prison Forum
The MENA Prison Forum, launched in 2018, researches and documents prisons and prisoners’ experiences across the region. Its resources include art, literature, film and testimonies.
A Dubai Artist Helps Women Process Difficult Times Through Creativity
Art helped Zaahirah Muthy get through challenging times in her own life. She launched a series of art therapy workshops in Dubai to help other women do the same.
10 Books, 10 Years Later: Literature After the ‘Arab Spring’
A sampling of how writers from the Middle East and North Africa responded to the chaos and frustrations of the “Arab Spring” uprisings.
Palestinian Diaspora Literature Resurges from Obscurity
Publishers are showing new interest in creative poetry and fiction by young Palestinians whose works reflect the emotional and physical scars of displacement.
Artists in Saudi Arabia Gain New Recognition and Support
A new art grant from the Misk Art Institute provides major support for artists and could help shift attitudes about careers in art.
Collection Brings Pioneering Iraqi Poet to New Audiences
Though considered “one of the most significant Arab writers of the twentieth century,” Nazik al-Mala’ika was little known in English. A new bilingual edition creates a fuller portrait of her work.
Recommended Reading, 2020: Books From and About the Arab World
A sampling of works published, translated or honored in the past year illustrates the diversity of scholarly and literary writing by Arab authors.
