Article
Culture & the Language of Creativity in the Arab Region
Culture & the Language of Creativity in the Arab Region
From the Al-Ahsa Oasis, Memphis and its Necropolis, to the oud as well as several living cultural traditions, the Arab Region boasts a rich and dynamic cultural landscape. Stretching over a large geographic area, the countries within the Region share a collective part of their identity through the Islamic culture and the Arabic language, inter alia. This, in turn, has strongly influenced the cultural and creative sector. Within the Region and beyond, the unfettered exchanges and dialogues since millennia, encompassing economic, social and cultural dimensions, have further permeated the wide variety of creative fields, from music, poetry, calligraphy, performing arts, crafts, design and architecture to the contemporary and digital arts.
In 2020 and still today, the COVID-19 health crisis has brought unforeseeable repercussions around the world 鈥 economies have been largely suspended and societies left reeling. Whilst this unprecedented crisis has exacerbated pre-existing fault lines and vulnerabilities within the cultural sector, it also brought about a reality check on the critical contribution of culture to individual wellbeing, social resilience and prosperity. More than ever, culture is regarded as a necessity for building back better and stronger.
Cultural policies across the region are showing renewed commitment to support the cultural and creative sector through a variety of measures and initiatives. Youth creative voices are growing and testifying to the dynamism of arts and culture across the Region, calling for greater investment in providing enhanced opportunities for vocational education and training, as well as working opportunities and perspectives in the creative sector, and innovative cultural entrepreneurship, leveraging the pivotal role of culture for translating their aspirations in forging more sustainable, resilient and inclusive societies.
The Arabic language and creativity: Drivers for vitality and culture in the Arab region Preliminary study
In a preliminary report, UNESCO endeavours to explore creativity in the Arab region, particularly by gauging the influence of the Arabic language and digital transformation, specifically among young people, whilst highlighting the broader impact of cultural and creative industries upon development and social cohesion, and their progressive establishment in the public policies of countries. The present study has been completed, firstly, on the basis of a survey conducted among regional experts in the fields of culture, the arts and creativity; secondly, interviews have been conducted with young artists in the Arab region for the collection of data, testimonies and experiences, which punctuate the present report; finally, literature research has been undertaken for the exploration of cultural policies and the identification of initiatives and mechanisms for the support of creativity.This preliminary study reveals the dynamism of contemporary creativity in the Arab region, together with the impetus for innovation and renewal delivered by young people, particularly in the context of the global health crisis.
This study confirms the unifying force of the Arabic language, its anchorage in the cultural identity of the region, the numerous ways in which it sustains the cultural landscape 鈥 including the digital environment 鈥 and the potential which it represents in a region grappled at times by conflicts. Finally, this study reiterates the necessity for the reinforcement of public policies 鈥 whether educational, cultural, economic or social 鈥 in the interests of the full exploitation of creativity, in light of developmental issues in the region, as well as for a commitment to investment in education, including in particular, the technical and vocational education and training, all in view of the promotion of the cultural sector.
Voices of Young Artists from the Arab Region One Word, One Artist
Virtual Gallery : A Closer Look into the Young Artists' Artworks
Take A Closer Look into the Young Artists' Artworks
Biodatas of the Artists
Noura Bin Saidan
Noura Bin Saidan is a visual artist from Saudi Arabia. She has a master鈥檚 degree of art, and she is one of the up-and-coming female artists in Riyadh. Among her artworks, she has executed the longest mural in Saudi Arabia. Her main aspiration is to transform public spaces through art, painting, and calligraphy, in order to make them more creative, inspiring and cheerful. Noura Bin Saidan strives to contribute to the cultural development of her country while affirming with optimism that women can succeed brilliantly in all fields, including art. Instagram: @nourabinsaidan
Tony Maalouf
Tony Maalouf is an interior architect and an illustrator with a propensity for art and design. His perspective to sketching and mixed media reflects the Lebanese rich culture and creativity. Tony Maalouf sketches daily life and traditions, infusing architecture with photography, shapes and colours to create artwork that is brimming in both nostalgia and modernity 鈥 reflective of his beloved Lebanon. Instagram: @elmaalouf
Miramar Moh鈥檇
Miramar Moh鈥檇 is a 23-year-old Iraqi self-taught visual artist and a muralist based in Amman. Born into a family of artists, she was constantly surrounded by art as she grew up. Professionally, she has participated in multiple personal and collective exhibitions and painted several murals, inside and outside of Jordan. In her teenage years, she acquired a profound love for visual art and forms of nonverbal expression. Through this passion, she aims to understand what it means to be a woman in a modern Arab society, using painting in the face of injustice and gender-based discrimination. Animated by a strong sense of humanism and social justice, Miramar primarily employs murals as a medium to bring fine art from museums and galleries into the street. Instagram: @miramar.muhd
Ismail Zaidy
Ismail Zaidy - L4artiste - is a photographer from Marrakech, Morocco. Ismail started photography in 2017, using his smartphone to capture his surrounding environment in Morocco and express his inner perspective about it. His style is abstract, poetic, colorful and minimalist. Family is intrinsic to his creative process and is a source of inspiration. He associates the members of his family to create visual stories. In 2018, he started a project named 鈥3aila鈥, which means 鈥渇amily鈥 in Arabic, with his younger brother and his young sister Fatima Zahra. Ismail has grown up in a modest neighborhood of Marrakech, watching women鈥檚 outfits, and getting inspired by the colorful hikes and djellabas. The vitality and variety of cultural expressions in his city Marrakesh, notably the flea market with its multifaceted dimensions represent his inspiration and serve as the stage for his creative art. Instagram: @l4artiste
Bouthayna Al Muftah
Bouthayna Al Muftah is a Qatari visual artist, holding a Bachelor degree of Arts from Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts, in Qatar, in 2010. Upon her graduation, Al Muftah directed her artistic practice to printmaking, typography and documentation, which evolved over the years into large-scale installations and performances. The core inspiration behind her artistic production is her country鈥檚 cultural heritage borrowed from the oral history and folklore of her country to reflect her personal relationship with her land鈥檚 past. Her creative art reflects the life in the old neighborhoods of her country and the people who shaped them, to create contemporary settings through abstract and figurative art. Her works of art are inspired by an in-depth research into the ancient traditions of her country. Instagram: @b_almuftah
Nada Elkalaawa
Nada Elkalaawa was born in Alexandria, Egypt, in 1995. A London-based artist, she graduated from eminent fine art schools in the UK and Egypt. Her works of art feature in numerous art galleries across Europe, the Arab States and Latin America. She is one of five founding members of the artist group K-OH-LLECTIVE, recipient of Mophradat鈥檚 Self-Organizations grant in 2020. In her creative work, she captures inspiration from everyday life paying a close attention to detail and showing an intimate view into human feelings and inner expectations. Her nuanced reflections, both from an autobiographical and a fictional perspective, have been presented across international shows and festivals throughout a variety of art forms, from drawing to tapestry, animation, painting, and installations. Website:
Abdelrahman Elshahed
Abdelrahman Elshahed was born in 1993, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, where he learned the art of calligraphy. He received the Calligraphy certification 鈥業jaza鈥 in 2012. Along with his interests in art, he taught Arabic Calligraphy, gave several lectures and workshops on Islamic art, and published various research papers within the field. He obtained a Bachelor鈥檚 degree in Architecture, from the Faculty of Engineering and Islamic Architecture, Umm Al Qura University. His works focus on spiritual geometric at the heart of Islamic art, featuring the cultural, historical, scientific, and religious heritage through mixed media and symbolism. Calligraphy and architecture are important components of his art. In 2016, he designed one of the largest calligraphy gates in the world, on the occasion of Jeddah International Book Fair in Saudi Arabia. His art is part of many public and private collections. He has participated in several group exhibitions around the world and has been awarded numerous prizes. Website: abdelrahmanelshahed.com
Thanks to Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Foundation
