ARTS AND ISLAM
"Free Muslims: Autonomy and Creativity"
SOAS Brunei Gallery, Thornhaugh Street, London
Tuesday 16th February 2010
10am to 2pm
British Muslims for Secular Democracy in association with the British Council present a half day symposium exploring the themes of creativity and autonomy in the arts within a Muslim and Islamic context.
Various artists and cultural commentators will be invited from Britain and other parts of the world. BMSD Chair Yasmin Alibhai-Brown will chair the event, working alongside Catherine Fieschi, Director of Counterpoint at the British Council. For further information and registration go to http://www.bmsd.org.uk
Confirmed speakers include:
Razia Iqbal, special correspondent, BBC News, and former BBC senior arts correspondent
Hassan Mahamdallie and Abid Hussain, Arts Council England
Tahmena Bokhari, professor, social worker and activist who won the Mrs Pakistan World title in 2010
Saira Khan, businesswoman and former Apprentice star
Ayesha Tammy Haq, corporate lawyer and organiser of Pakistan's Fashion Week
Joan Smith, novelist and human rights activist
Anwar Akhtar, Director of new online culture and politics magazine "The Samosa" and former Director of the Richmix Cultural Centre in East London
Salman Siddiqui, Co-Chair of the Muslim-Jewish theatre company MUJU
2009 marked the 5th year of the Arts and Islam programme and the launch of our biggest programme of activity to date. 2009 Highlights include:
The In the Heart of the City seminar was delivered in October in partnership with a number of organisations including OpenVizor and Tinag. The event was held at East London mosque and featured a number of prominent speakers including Abdul Lateef Whiteman, Liz Hingley, Zarah Hussain and Richard Gale.
The event featured a number of presentations from prominent artists, faith leaders and leading architects exploring the relationship between faith, beliefs and the built environment.
Photo credits for Architecture Symposium Rehan Jamil
Tower Hamlets Arts Residency for artists of Bangladeshi Origin
Support for the Muslim Women Film Festival
During 2009 the Arts and Islam team has worked with an ecclectic mix of artists, arts practitioners, academics, educationalists from all faith backgrounds including
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Amir Sulaiman - HBO Def Jam Poet from the USA
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Brother Dash - Spoken Word Poet from the USA
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Mustafa Davis - Internationally acclaimed film producer and director from the USA
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Mohammed Ali - Graffiti Artist, UK
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Adbullateef Whiteman - Calligrapher, UK
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Muiz Anwar, Digital Media Artist, Typographer, UK
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Liz Hingley - Photographer / Artist, UK
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Zarah Hussain - Visual Artist, UK
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Richard Gale - Academic, Birmingham University, UK
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Lowkey MC - Hip Hop Artist, UK
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Poetic Pilgrimage - Hip Hop Artists, UK
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Mecca 2 Medina - Hip Hop Artists, UK
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Mangera Yvars Architects - UK
An integral part of our philosophy is to deliver work through brokering effective and empowering partnerships, in 2009 the Arts and Islam programme has worked with
We look forward to working with you in 2010 to bring you even more groundbreaking projects and interventions. For further information on the Arts and Islam programme you can contact us at
info@artsandislam.com