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The seventh edition of Aswan International Women Film Festival ( AIWFF) will honor the great Tunisian director, producer and politician Selma Baccar for her tremendous influence in the cinematic field being the first female Tunisian director who directed a feature-length film.
Her works include Fatma 76 (1976), The Fire Dance (1995), Flower of Oblivion (2005), El Jaida (2017), among others.
The seventh edition of AIWFF will kick off from March 5-10, 2023.
Dr Azza Kamel, Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Aswan International Women Film Festival said that Selma Baccar is a great filmmaker not only in Tunisian cinema, but also in Arab cinema, as her films conveyed the concerns of Tunisian women in different historical stages, in addition to her historical postion as the first Tunisian director to present a feature film.
Kamel stressed that the festival decided to honor Baccar as it seeks to honor creative women who have contributed to the portrayal of women’s issues from all over the world.
Kamel pointed out that Baccar’s struggle for women’s issues wasn’t limited to cinema screen, as a director or as a producer, but she was strongly present in the Tunisian political scene, as a member of the National Constituent Assembly to draft the constitution after the Tunisian Revolution, in addition to her work as a member in the Tunisian parliament defending rights and freedoms, stressing that honoring Baccar is a tribute to Tunisian cinema, which in recent years has achieved great successes at the international level by producing acclaimed films that support women.
The seventh edition of Aswan International Women Film Festival ( AIWFF) announced that it will honor veteran Egyptian actress dubbed Egypt’s first star Nabila Ebeid, acclaimed TV presenter Dorria Sharaf Eldin and the award-winning Dutch director, screenwriter and producer Mijke De Jong.
President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi listened to an explanation of the details of Egypt’s Islamic Cultural Center and the Egypt’s Grand Mosque, during his visit to the New Administrative Capital at dawn, Thursday, to join workers for the first suhoor in the blessed month of Ramadan.
According to the explanation, Egypt’s Grand Mosque obtained three international certificates from the Guinness World Records.
The first was for the largest pulpit in the world with a height of 16.6 meters, handcrafted from the finest types of wood.
The second and third were for the main chandelier of the mosque, being the heaviest chandelier in the world of 50 tons, and it being the largest chandelier with a diameter of 22 meters and four levels.
Egypt’s Islamic Cultural Center in the New Administrative Capital is a great achievement and one of the most important projects established in the New Administrative Capital.
The Islamic Cultural Center was established in the new capital on an area of 15,000 square meters. It has a large place for services, as well as a group of spacious and multi-storey garages, with a capacity of about 4,000 cars.
In the heart of Islamic Cairo, Souq Al Khayamiya has been continuing a tradition in textiles dating back to the pharaohs.
Amidst the vibrant alleys, the scent of exotic spices and the insistent clamour of haggling merchants that so readily defines Islamic Cairo’s marketplace lies Souq Al Khayamiya. There, the rhythmic tapping of hammers against fabrics leads you to the heart of the souq, where skilled artisans create breathtaking Khayamiya textiles – a craft and art form that dates back to the time of the pharaohs.
Consisting of elaborately patterned and colourful appliques applied to the interior of tents, the decorative textile art form serves simultaneously as shelter and ornamentation.
Khayamiya possesses the three layers typical of quilts – a heavy “back”, a background “top”, and elaborate appliqué over the “top”. Khayamiya has been an integral part of Egypt’s cultural heritage for centuries, with a rich history that reflects the country’s artistic and cultural diversity. The art form has survived centuries of changes in Egypt’s political, social, and economic landscape and is still practised today.
The souq is a testament to the enduring legacy of this ancient art form and the craftsmanship of the artisans who keep it alive. Through its intricate patterns and vibrant colours, Khayamiya showcases the beauty and richness of Egypt’s artistic heritage. It serves as a reminder of the country’s past and the vibrant artistic traditions that have been passed down through generations.
Today, Khayamiya is not only an important cultural artefact but also an expression of contemporary Egyptian art, with many artists and fashion designers incorporating these ancient techniques and motifs into their work.
Mariam Saleh Binladen took just four hours to make the crossing from the Saudi island of Tiran to the Egyptian resort of Sharm El-Sheikh.
A Saudi dentist and endurance swimmer has set a new women’s world record time for swimming across the Red Sea.
Mariam Saleh Binladen took just four hours to make the crossing from the Saudi island of Tiran to the Egyptian resort of Sharm El-Sheikh.
She was accompanied in the water on her 9-kilometer swim by Lewis Pugh, a British South African endurance swimmer and UN patron of the oceans.
Pugh was on the first leg of his campaign to raise awareness about the destruction of oceans and coral reefs in the run up to the 2022 UN Climate Change Conference (COP27) due to take place in Sharm El-Sheikh next month.
Binladen told Arab News: “During the final moments of the swim, I felt elated, a sense of jubilation, and blessed to have achieved my goal with my body intact.
“I had concerns before embarking on the swim, namely the weather conditions and sharks. As the last moments approached, I thanked Allah that the team had made it safe and sound through what were quite hazardous conditions.”
Due to high winds and rough seas the swim had to be staggered over two days.
She said: “We completed the swim in two segments and fed less often to minimize the risk of shark attacks. I would say that the most challenging aspect was at the midway point when the sea became very turbulent.
“We had also agreed to swim without protective cages, so those sharks were always at the back of our minds.”
Binladen has been involved in open water endurance swimming professionally since 2012.
“I train hard at least three times a week. Over my weekends, I alternate between four to six hours of swims to maintain momentum. I maintain a dedicated fitness regime, and I keep to a physically gruelling schedule when I am preparing for a challenge,” she added.
Her first major world record-breaking swim was in London’s River Thames in 2016, but she pointed out that the Red Sea attempt was for a greater cause.
“I agreed to join this challenge as the cause is near to my heart. These challenges are not for the faint of heart; you really need to be disciplined with your training and build up your physical and mental strength. Those two things are what will keep you going and be the key to success,” she said.
Long-distance swimming, she noted, was physically and mentally challenging and it was only with the support of a sports counsellor and her family that she was able to prepare herself.
“We sift through any fears and concerns together. I cannot stress enough how important it is to always work with professionals and to surround yourself with the right people.
“I’m blessed to also have the support and reassurance of a loving family without whom I could never have embarked on this journey,” she added.
Binladen’s charitable work has included offering support to refugees.
She said: “I am primed and physically and mentally prepared to take on my next challenge.
“In terms of the future, I will continue to use my challenges to raise awareness of issues that concern me, my philanthropic work is ongoing, and I have my career, and I am very busy.”
She now has five world records to her name, including being the first Arab to complete the Dardanelles Strait open water race in Turkey from Asia to Europe, in August 2015, completing the 6.5-km distance in one hour, 27 minutes, and 26 seconds.
In September 2016, she became the first Saudi to complete an assisted swim across the English Channel of 39.7 km, a feat she did in 11 hours and 41 minutes.
And she was also the first swimmer to cross the Dubai Creek and Dubai Water Canal, clocking up a total distance of 24 km in nine hours and 10 minutes.
source/content: arabnews.com (headline edited)
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Saudi dentist and endurance swimmer Maryam Saleh Binladen. (Supplied)
The organisers and sponsors of the Third Libyan Couscous Day 2023 reported that the event succeeded in breaking the world record for the largest couscous dish. They reported that a dish was prepared weighting over 2,500 kgs.
The event was held on Friday in the historic city of Sabrata and is organised by the Libyan Intangible Heritage and Cultural Organization (NGO). It aims to inform the world that couscous is a national Libyan dish and is part of its heritage – along with Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco.
The event was sponsored by a leading Libyan couscous manufacturer.
The first in the ‘Arab News’ series focusing on contemporary Arab-American artists in honor of Arab-American Heritage Month .
Los Angeles-based artist Saj Issa was raised between two different worlds. As the child of Palestinian parents who fled the First Intifada in the Eighties, she grew up in St. Louis, Missouri, and spent her summers in Palestine. “Each setting brought out a different part me,” she tells Arab News.
“At first, it took a minute for me to come to terms with that. I thought I wasn’t being authentic: The person that I was portraying myself as at school around my friends was different than the person I was portraying at home. But I realize that those are all parts of me. I don’t really see it as an issue so much now as I did when I was younger.”
Issa is an emerging visual artist, who obtained a Master’s in Fine Arts from the University of California and has had her work displayed in LA’s museums and art fairs. Her drive to create art began in childhood, marked by a tactile tendency to paint and make crafts.
“I grew up watching (creator of the US TV show “The Joy of Painting”) Bob Ross — America’s savior — and I was mimicking that action of holding a painting palette,” Issa recalls.
Her ceramic tile pieces juxtapose design elements that are omnipresent in both Eastern and Western cultures. She merges major Western company logos — such as Nike, Coca Cola, and Shell — with Middle Eastern geometrical and vegetal patterns.
“I’m interested in the consequences of globalization,” says Issa. “My choice of which brands make an appearance are based on which ones made a critical impact in the East. I utilize traditional tile work combined with corporate logos as a way to draw connections between the way that colonization seeps into the indigenous ways of life. Repetition is also a means to communicate habits of consumption, mass production and advertising.”
That geometrical ornamentation continues throughout her other series, such as “Convenience Store,” which was partly inspired by her immigrant father’s former job in a corner store. The series’ portraits of workers evoke a feeling of nostalgia and loss of identity in a quick-transaction environment; standing behind the counter, surrounded by daily items, the workers’ faces — or entire bodies — are obscured by receipts.
“I just want to build my own visual language through these mediums,” Issa says.
Since 1973, L’Oréal Paris supports each and every woman on her journey to success and self-worth. Through the “Women Of Worth” program, L’Oréal Paris honored 10 leading Lebanese women, who have overcome challenges and achieved greatness in their respective fields, in Lebanon and in the whole world. The awards were delivered during a gala dinner ceremony titled “Walk your Worth”, held on March 28, 2023 at the Middle East Airlines (MEA) Training Center in Beirut.
During the event, Mrs. Emilie Wahab Harb, Managing Director of L’Oréal Liban, said: “As a brand that has always taken on the cause of women’s worth, L’Oréal Paris is proud to recognize and celebrate the outstanding achievements of 10 exceptional Lebanese women who have overcome challenges and achieved greatness in their fields. Their accomplishments inspire future generations and contribute to the development of the Lebanese society, thanks to their passion, dedication, and commitment to excellence.” Moreover, she asserted that “L’Oréal Paris firmly believes that all women are worth it, whereas it’s evident to support their journeys and recognize their successes”, asking all women and those present at the ceremony, to “recognize the power of beauty as a catalyst of self-worth”. She further added: “We are entirely convinced that women’s causes should be celebrated and highlighted. That is the reason why we founded “Women Of Worth” which gathers us tonight, as we follow a journey we started 50 years ago, and which we will firmly continue because women are worth it.”
The honored Lebanese women were chosen by L’Oréal Paris not only for their accomplishments, but also for the values they embody, namely self-confidence, perseverance, resilience:
–Mrs. Nayla Tueni – CEO of An Nahar Newscorp and Editor in Chief of Annahar newspaper. Awarded under the Media category, Mrs. Tueni is a prominent Lebanese journalist.
–Dr. Hiba Al Kawas – President of the Lebanese National Higher Conservatory of Music. Awarded under the arts category. Dr. Kawas is a Lebanese composer, opera singer, scholar, and pioneer of Arab Opera.
–Mrs. Ghida Anani – Founder & Director of ABAAD – Resource Centre for Gender Equality. Awarded under the Social Responsibility category, Ms. Anani led a number of public opinion campaigns, notably the #Undress522 which resulted in the abortion of the article 522 of the Lebanese penal code.
–Captain Rola Hoteit – Airline Pilot at MEA. Awarded under the bravery category, Mrs. Hoteit is an Airbus A320 and A330 Captain, and the first Lebanese female airline captain.
–Mrs. Mireille Hayek – Founder & Owner of Em Sherif: Awarded under the Culinary Category, Mrs. Hayek is well known among the Lebanese and Arab society for her passion for cooking, her dedication and leadership in her restaurant that revives the Lebanese tradition, and which has been a success in Lebanon and abroad such as in London and Monaco.
–Mrs. Yola Zard Noujaim – Architect, Founder of Jabalna Festival & Owner of Al Fundok Hotel. Awarded under the sustainability category, she restored the old school of Maasser el chouf in an understated rural style to become Al Fundok boutique Hotel. This eco hotel is a non-profit community project, which encourages local tourism, creates a sustainable income for the community and promotes environmental, cultural, and culinary estate preservations.
–Mrs. Fadia ElMendelek – Hair Consultant. Awarded under the beauty category, Mrs. ElMendelek is a hair stylist whose talent and creativity earned her many European awards. With an online service and her own line “K by Fadia El Mendelek” of premium all-natural hair care products and extensions, she became the stylist to many celebrities and Arab Royalties.
–Mrs. Danielle Hatem – Founder & CEO of D Does Business. Awarded under the Digital Business category, Mrs. Hatem is an influential blogger who highlights strategic economical facts and figures, with the aim to create awareness about latest business headlines, while influencing and motivating the youth into entrepreneurship and business growth.
–Miss Rana Hayek, Electro-Mechanical Engineer & Car Mechanic. Awarded under the outstanding category, she’s Lebanon’s first female car mechanic. She is a diagnosis engineer at Sigma, the exclusive agent for Seat, Mitsubishi, and Ducati.
–Miss Aleen Sabbagh – Founder & Owner of The Concept. Awarded under the fashion category. What started as a personal devotion to fashion turned into a full-fledged clothing brand. Aleen Sabbagh, the young Lebanese face behind it all, goes from one factory to the other looking to constantly design drop trendy collections that always manage to sell out quickly.
The event was presented and moderated by Ms. Nadine W. Njeim, who discussed with each awardee her journey to success. It was attended by an audience of more than 150 invitees including public figures, the awardees’ families, journalists and representatives of various Lebanese media outlets, bloggers and social media influencers, as well as L’Oréal’s team and partners of L’Oréal Paris in Lebanon.
A literary critic, editor and leading authority on Arabic to English translation lists five books to keep on your radar.
For the shorter days of spring, here are some new Arab books in translation coming in the early months of 2023 that run short, fast, and muscular.
These five are full of thrills, insight, and dark humour.
Shalash the Iraqi
By Shalash, translated by Luke Leafgren
The popular Iraqi blogger known as “Shalash” wrote his posts between 2005 and 2006, during the post-war insurgency in Iraq. Shalash took advantage of anonymity and wide reach to satirize political corruption, economic injustice, and more in an over-the-top comic tone.
By Haji Jaber, translated by Sawad Hussain and M Lynx Qualey
The hero of Haji Jaber’s Black Foam is a hustler and identity-shifter extraordinaire in desperate search not of cash, but of a community that will accept him. The young man—alternately Adal, Dawoud, David, and Dawit— starts in Eritrea, then in a refugee camp over the border in Ethiopia, next in a minority Jewish community in Ethiopia, and finally in Israel and Palestine. In this fast-paced novel, which alternates between comedy and tragedy, the narrator is willing to do almost anything to find a place he can belong.
By Zakaria Tamer, translated by Alessandro Columbu and Mireia Costa Capallera
These fifty-nine stories—by turns satirical and magical—are set in a fictional Syrian neighborhood called al-Qaweyq. Penned by one of the greatest living short-story writers, the stories in Sour Grapes follow a loosely connected cast of characters living at society’s margins and challenging everything that might keep them down.
James Montgomery, the award-winning translator of Antarah ibn Shaddad’s battle poems War Songs, now takes on early Arabic hunting poems. This collection brings together both the English and Arabic of twenty-six muscular, animal-centered works. In these timeless poems of man and nature, you’ll find trained cheetahs chasing down desert oryx, goshawks soaring, and archers stalking their prey.
Not a translation, but a noteworthy entry. The mystery-novel debut of Lebanese-American Margot Douaihy, Scorched Grace tells the story of Sister Holiday, a hard-boiled, much-tattooed nun with a troubled past who joins a convent in New Orleans. After an arsonist targets—among other things—her new convent, Sister Holiday launches an investigation. By focusing on family and secrets, Douaihy offers a new take on the figure of the hard-boiled detective.
Malmö Arab Film Festival (MAFF) announced that the Egyptian star Hussein Fahmy will be tributed with a life achievement award, which he will receive during the opening ceremony of the 13th edition of the festival, which will be held from April 28 to May 4, 2023.
The ceremony will be held in the Royal Hall (Rådhus) under the auspices of the City of Malmö and in the presence of the mayor.
Fahmy will also give a masterclass during the festival, which will be held in Malmö’s city library.
Hussein Fahmy has a tremendous artistic career that extends for more than half a century, from the time he played his first role in the movie “Dalal Al-Masria” directed by Hassan El-Imam in 1970 until his most recent role in the series “Sero El Batie” directed by Khaled Youssef, shown during the current month of Ramadan.
Through his career, Fahmy acted in more than two hundred films, series, plays, and radio works, and worked with the top-notch directors of Egyptian cinema, such as Youssef Chahine, Kamal Al-Sheikh, Henry Barakat, Mohamed Khan, and others, in addition to holding various cultural positions, including the presidency of the Cairo International Film Festival for two terms, the first between 1998 and 2001, and the second started in 2022 and continues to this day.
The founder and director of the Malmö Festival, Muhammad Keblawi, commented on the tribute, saying: “Tributes are not a compulsory annual tradition at MAFF. It is not only related to the presence of a great star or director in the city, but the festival is offering tributes only when those who deserve it attend. This year we are pleased with the presence of a living cinematic legend: Hussein Fahmy, who created a place in the memory of every viewer of Arab cinema and TV”.
For his part, Hussein Fahmy expressed his happiness with the award, stressing his appreciation for the contributions of MAFF to the Arab cinema during the last few years, and his aspiration to meet the audience of the Malmö and talk to them about his career.
The masterclass will be held in the Malmö City Library at 3pm, Sunday, April 30th, and the discussion will be moderated by critic Ahmed Shawky, who in 2022 published a book entitled “Hussein Fahmy: The Biography of Egyptian Cinema in Half a Century.”
Tunisian artist Safia Farhat was not only a dynamic tapestry creator, but had an impressive resumé including ceramicist, educator, women’s rights activist, and publishing pioneer. She was a woman who accumulated a list of historic firsts in her lifetime.
She contributed to the growth of visual culture in independent Tunisia under the progressive leadership of President Habib Bourguiba. Farhat designed national stamps, had her fiber art displayed in the country’s banks, hotels, and schools, and worked with expert weavers and artisans in her studio.
Farhat was born in the harbor city of Rades in 1924 and raised in a well-to-do family. It was her maternal aunt, who was skilled in knitting and crochet, who cultivated Farhat’s love of art. She went on to study at the Tunis Institute of Fine Arts and was reportedly just the third Tunisian woman to enroll there.
She later became the institute’s first female director in 1966 — remaining in the role for more than a decade. She encouraged female students to take part in the institute’s programming. Farhat also founded Tunisia’s first magazine for women, “Faiza,” delving into feminism and decolonization, among other social issues.
Her colorful, thickly lined tapestries depict animals, plants, and men and women wearing traditional clothing. “When I saw her work, I was really fascinated by its sculptural elements, the color, the various techniques that were embedded in it — and by their stories,” Jessica Gerschultz, a professor of African studies at the University of Kansas, told Arab News.
“She seems to really play on self-referentiality,” she continued. “Her works are referring to her other works, so there are many symbols — lots of triangles and zigzags — integrated into her weavings and other works that she did in ceramics and iron.”
Farhat, who died in 2004, is a name still recognized by some older people in her homeland, but she has been generally overlooked, ironically, by young art students in Tunisia. “At the institute, maybe students know her name, but they’re not very familiar with her,” noted Gerschultz. “Maybe they don’t know her at all.”
International interest in Farhat, however, was boosted last year as a result of her works being showcased at the Venice Biennale. “It’s wonderful to see her contributions now being viewed more widely,” said Gerschultz.
