Thirty female Arab artists gathered in Tunisia last week to consider modernity's effect on Arab culture.
By Houda Trabelsi for Magharebia in Tunis – 20/04/10
Modernity and globalization's impact on Arab identity were the focus of a group of Arab women in the arts who met in Tunisia last Saturday (April 17th) for the 5th annual Festival of Creative Arab Women.
At their two-day meeting in Sousse, 30 creative women from across the Arab world shared personal experiences and discussed how Arab identity can be best preserved in an increasingly interconnected world.
"Preserving the identity is one of woman's roles," Amel Moussa said at the meeting. The Tunisian poet, journalist and sociologist criticized "certain ideological approaches" for promoting the idea that Arabism symbolizes extremism and exclusion of the other.
"Arab society is living in a crisis of identity and confusion," Moussa added. "The role of intellectuals is to make Arab citizens reconcile with this identity, and in this way they can understand the other and achieve moderation."
Arab women can help eliminate these "impurities" through their creative works, she said.
Saudi plastic artist Maha Bent Abdallah Sannen agreed, saying it is natural that "creative women try to … demonstrate the Arab heritage through their works".
All women can strengthen the Arab identity through motherhood, Sannen said, adding that Arab identity and patriotism are "among the deeply rooted values in them".
Moroccan singer-composer Salwa Choudari said Moroccan women turn to fashion to express their Arab identity.
"The Moroccan caftan has a worldwide fame through modern designs and continuous attempts to make it modern," she said.
Another artist, Iraqi director Aida Chlifer, argued that identity is rooted in everyday behavior. She pointed to her own experiences in maintaining her heritage despite growing up in Switzerland.
"Preserving Arab values through our personal behavior is the basis, so that this may be reflected in creativity," she said.
Jordanian journalist Besma Mohamed Ennassour said that preserving an Arab identity from "this fierce attack on all that is Arab" is of paramount importance for creative people.
However, she challenged the idea that women are solely responsible for maintaining Arab culture.
"The role of creative women is not different from that of creative men, given that creativity is a message through which we give the correct image about the Arab identity, which we can prove without necessarily being in conflict with other identities," she said.
Libyan novelist Razen Naim Maghrebi said it was not the duty of artists to preserve Arab identity or become social reformers, because ideology limits creativity and "should be avoided".
Tunisian journalist Dhafer Neji praised Arab women not only for their prolific contributions to the cultural scene, but also for their forward-thinking works.
"Creative Arab women are often more liberal and modern in their creative productions – they sweep away templates and limits and violate taboos," he said.
"It seems as if it is a case of revenge for the rest of women," he added.
Source: Magharebia.com
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2010/04/20/feature-02.
By Houda Trabelsi for Magharebia in Tunis – 20/04/10
Modernity and globalization's impact on Arab identity were the focus of a group of Arab women in the arts who met in Tunisia last Saturday (April 17th) for the 5th annual Festival of Creative Arab Women.
At their two-day meeting in Sousse, 30 creative women from across the Arab world shared personal experiences and discussed how Arab identity can be best preserved in an increasingly interconnected world.
"Preserving the identity is one of woman's roles," Amel Moussa said at the meeting. The Tunisian poet, journalist and sociologist criticized "certain ideological approaches" for promoting the idea that Arabism symbolizes extremism and exclusion of the other.
"Arab society is living in a crisis of identity and confusion," Moussa added. "The role of intellectuals is to make Arab citizens reconcile with this identity, and in this way they can understand the other and achieve moderation."
Arab women can help eliminate these "impurities" through their creative works, she said.
Saudi plastic artist Maha Bent Abdallah Sannen agreed, saying it is natural that "creative women try to … demonstrate the Arab heritage through their works".
All women can strengthen the Arab identity through motherhood, Sannen said, adding that Arab identity and patriotism are "among the deeply rooted values in them".
Moroccan singer-composer Salwa Choudari said Moroccan women turn to fashion to express their Arab identity.
"The Moroccan caftan has a worldwide fame through modern designs and continuous attempts to make it modern," she said.
Another artist, Iraqi director Aida Chlifer, argued that identity is rooted in everyday behavior. She pointed to her own experiences in maintaining her heritage despite growing up in Switzerland.
"Preserving Arab values through our personal behavior is the basis, so that this may be reflected in creativity," she said.
Jordanian journalist Besma Mohamed Ennassour said that preserving an Arab identity from "this fierce attack on all that is Arab" is of paramount importance for creative people.
However, she challenged the idea that women are solely responsible for maintaining Arab culture.
"The role of creative women is not different from that of creative men, given that creativity is a message through which we give the correct image about the Arab identity, which we can prove without necessarily being in conflict with other identities," she said.
Libyan novelist Razen Naim Maghrebi said it was not the duty of artists to preserve Arab identity or become social reformers, because ideology limits creativity and "should be avoided".
Tunisian journalist Dhafer Neji praised Arab women not only for their prolific contributions to the cultural scene, but also for their forward-thinking works.
"Creative Arab women are often more liberal and modern in their creative productions – they sweep away templates and limits and violate taboos," he said.
"It seems as if it is a case of revenge for the rest of women," he added.
Source: Magharebia.com
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2010/04/20/feature-02.
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