Launched in 2016, the events of Art Breath x SOAS look at the intricate relationship between art and politics, through the lens of art, themes explored throughout the series have been soft power, freedom of expression, street art, gender, identity, conflict, peace building, human rights and many more.
The power of art, the power of conversation can find a way to bring all of us together, propel knowledge, understanding, perspectives, and empathy.
On Wednesday 22th June 2022, Art Breath x SOAS: In Conversation With Sultan Sooud Al-Qassemi, the power of art and art from the SWANA region, formed part of the discussion between Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi in conversation with Nour Saleh.
The talk covered Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi’s interest and path into art, from his childhood in Sharjah to a young adult in Paris, to being inspired by literature and to the art and institutions that impacted him through his youth. Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi's work, realising art exhibitions, and founding the Barjeel Art Foundation was discussed, as well as the difference between contemporary art and art from the modernity period, art pre colonisation and after colonial rule, and the political side to abstract art. Al Qassemi presented a number of pioneering women artists from the SWANA Region and spoke about the visibility of art and artists. A conversation on education, adding to the History of Art as we know it and on Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi's lectures, The Politics of Modern Middle Eastern Art ensued, as well as contemplating social media's role in making art visible, yet often also being a tool that for many can become overwhelming. The talk featured Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi's admiration for architecture, its importance, and on his book Building Sharjah, co—edited with Todd Reisz.
Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi generously shared wonderful images of art, some stills of the talk are below. To learn about artists and art from the SWANA region, see Barjeel Art Foundation.
All images are stills taken from: In Conversation With Sultan Sooud Al-Qassemi's
Art Images copyright @ Sultan Sooud Al-Qassemi and Barjeel Art Foundation
Thank you to everyone who registered with SOAS and zoomed in for the talk, thank you to Sultan Sooud Al-Qassemi for the conversation and presentation, thank you Marina, Harris and Korede, SOAS Alumni and SOAS University
Art Breath x SOAS in conversation with Sultan Sooud Al-Qassemi
About this event
Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi will be in conversation with Nour Saleh, on the power of art and art from the SWANA region.
The talk will cover Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi’s work, research in cultural affairs, realising art exhibitions, on founding the Barjeel Art Foundation, adding to the History of Art as we know it and on his lectures on the Politics of Modern Middle Eastern Art.
Please join us for this engaging conversation and Q&A.
How to attend this online event:
The Zoom link to attend this online talk will be sent to you via email 2 days before the talk. Please sign up using the email address you would like the zoom link to be sent to.
Please note that you will need to have a Zoom account and be logged in to join the event.
The speakers:
Sultan Sooud Al-Qassemi is a columnist and researcher on social, political, and cultural affairs in the Arab Gulf states. Al-Qassemi is also founder of the Barjeel Art Foundation in Sharjah, UAE. He was an MIT Media Lab Director’s Fellow from 2014 to 2016, a practitioner-in-residence at the Hagop Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern Studies at New York University in spring 2017 and a Yale Greenberg World Fellow in 2018. Al-Qassemi was a visiting instructor at the Council of Middle East Studies at Yale University, the Center of Contemporary Arab Studies at Georgetown University, the American University of Paris, the Islamic Civilization and Societies programme at Boston College and the School of Public Affairs at SciencesPo, Paris. In the Fall 2021 Al Qassemi was appointed as Kuwait Foundation Visiting Scholar, Middle East Initiative at the Harvard Kennedy School and Lecturer, School of Arts and Sciences, Brandeis University. Al-Qassemi, along with Todd Reisz is co-editor of Building Sharjah (Birkhäuser, 2021).
Nour Saleh is the founder of Art Breath, an artist, moderator, writer. She holds a BA from Central St Martins in Fashion Print and an MSc in International Politics from SOAS University. She has worked in several fashion houses. Moderated a panel for Flying Bridges’s Leadership Forum at the OECD headquarters in Paris; has taken part in a variety of projects including 'Art for Life' with The British Red Cross and with Art Breath for Fly the Flag for Human Rights; she developed a series of events on art and politics at SOAS University and an event at University of Oxford Middle East Centre. She started the SOAS Alumni Book Club to continue the conversation after graduation, and is a Fellow at the RSA.