| Date & Time |
Title & Description |
Venue |
| 01 April - 31 October 2008 |
Exhibition: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: Fantastic Creatures in Islamic Painting Islamic writing is full of fantastic beasts. From angels to dragons, artists have shown many strange creatures on Islamic pottery, on metalwork, in manuscripts, even on buildings. |
Addis Gallery of Islamic Art, British Museum,
www.britishmuseum.org |
| 11 September - 19 October 2008 |
Exhibition: The Liberty of Appearing Photographs of the working people of Egypt by Yasser Alwan. |
Chats Palace Arts Centre, 42-44 Brooksby’s Walk, London, E9
chatspalace.com |
| 12 September - 27 October 2008 |
Film: Heavy Metal in Baghdad A entertaining and eye-opening pop-political documentary in which Vice journalists Eddy Moretti and Suroosh Alvi travel to Iraq in the hopes of locating the only heavy metal band in the country, Acrassicauda (named, of course, after a scorpion). Having played a great show following the fall of Saddam Hussein, the band is faced with the reality of staying together as their country falls into bloody insurgency. Acrassicauda refuse to let their heavy metal dreams die, and their story echoes the hopes of a generation of young Iraqis. Tickets: £8/£7 conc. |
ICA, The Mall, London, SW1
www.ica.org.uk |
| 19 September - 31 October 2008 |
Exhibition: Riding on Fire: Iraqi art under occupation It will exhibit 44 works of paintings and sculptures of 22 artists who live and work in Iraq. Curated by the Iraqi sculptors Najim Alqaysi and Redha Farhan, this is the first exhibition to focus exclusively on Iraqi art after occupation. 'Riding on Fire' will include oil paintings and bronze statues by well known artists who represent contemporary Iraqi art as it is today. |
London, Artiquea Gallery, 82 Wandsworth Bridge Road, London SW6 2TF. www.artiquea.co.uk |
| 23 September - 18 October 2008 |
Performing Arts: Welcome to Ramallah A new play by Sonja Linden and Adah Kay Directed by Sue Lefton. |
Arcola Theatre, 27 Arcola Street, E8 2DJ www.arcolatheatre.com |
| 24 September - 17 October 2008 |
Exhibition: Seeking an Immutable Essence It is exactly 30 years since Dr Ahmed Moustafa held his first exhibition at the Mathaf Gallery in London. To celebrate this anniversary Ahmed is delighted to announce an exhibition of his work spanning these years. The show will consist of a number of signed, limited edition prints. Some images will already be well known, other works less so, while a few have been produced specially for the exhibition from original pieces. An original painting to be included in the exhibition is entitled 'An Olive Tree that is neither of the East or the West'. |
24 Motcomb Street, London, SW1 www.mathafgallery.com |
| 27 September - 10 January 2009 |
Exhibition: 30 Years of Solitude Photography and Film by Iranian Women An Asia House and Iran Heritage Foundation presentation. Showing a selection of work by some of Iran’s most talented and extraordinary women artists, this is the first exhibition in the UK featuring artists who all live and work in Iran. |
Asia House, 63 New Cavendish Street, London, W1 www.asiahouse.org |
| 29 September 2008 18:30 - 19:30 |
Lecture: Inventing Iraq; Inventing Iran, Britons and the American in the Middle East Lecture by Karl E Meyer and Shareen Blair Brysac authors of the recent book entitled 'Kingmakers, the Invention of the Modern Middle East'. |
Royal Asiatic Society, 14 Stephenson Way, London, NW1 www.royalasiaticsociety.org |
| 01 October 2008 19:00 - 20:00 |
Literary Event: Thinking Palestine - Book Launch Ronit Lentin of the Department of Sociology in Trinity College Dublin presents the launch of his book, Thinking Palestine. This book brings together an inter-disciplinary group of Palestinian, Israeli, American, British and Irish scholars who theorise 'the question of Palestine'. |
School of Oriental and African Studies, Thornhaugh Street, London, WC1 www.ronitlentin.net |
| 02 October 2008 18:30 - 20:00 |
Lecture: The Two Faces of Asia: bridging the gap between high growth economies and the poor Despite impressive growth over the past few decades, the Asia Pacific region is still home to two-thirds of the world's poor. In many Asian countries, the gap between rich and poor is widening and policymakers are faced with extraordinary challenges in closing this gap and spreading the benefits of growth to the most vulnerable in their societies. Rising fuel and food prices have exacerbated these inequities and placed millions more on the edge of poverty. The Managing Director General of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Rajat Nag, will discuss how the region is grappling with these complex challenges and how ADB's Strategy 2020 is targeted to make a difference in the lives of the poor. Rajat M. Nag, an alumnus of LSE, is a development professional and economist who has dedicated his career to bridging the gap between the Asia Pacific region's thriving economies and the millions of poor people left behind. |
Old Theatre, London School of Economics & Political Science
www.lse.ac.uk |
| 02 - 02 October 2008 18:30 - 20:00 |
Lecture: Wealth creation in the developing world: Is Africa a lost cause? Why has Africa failed to enjoy the fruits of the globalisation of the past quarter century, whilst regions such as South East Asia and India have enjoyed a rapid growth in prosperity? Is aid the answer - or the problem? What can be learned from comparing countries such as Ghana and Malaysia, who were on an economic par when they achieved independence fifty years ago, but now have vastly differing economies? Our panel of speakers will include Firoz Rasul, president, the Aga Khan University, Richard Dowden, director, Royal African Society, Anver Versi, editor, African Business, Boko Inyundo, trustee and director, the Africa Centre and Chukwu-Emeka Chikezie, executive director, Afford (African Foundation for Development) |
RSA, 8 John Adam St, London, WC2
www.thersa.org |
| 04 October 2008 10:00 - 17:00 |
Seminar/Workshop: Orientalists Artists in an Orientalist House? Leighton House Museum provides the sumptuous and appropriate setting for a joint Study Day with ASTENE on Orientalist travellers and artists. Taking the exhibition at Tate Britain The Lure of the East, British Orientalist Painting as their point of reference, each speaker will focus on key historical figures and look at the role they played in interpreting and defining the region, both culturally and politically. |
Leighton House Museum, 12 Holland Park Road, London, W14
www.rbkc.gov.uk |
| 06 - 24 October 2008 |
Exhibition: The Illuminated Word: The Qur'an 650-1930 An exhibition bringing together over 50 examples of Qur'anic calligraphy and illumination, covering a period of 1,300 years and spanning a wide geographical area, from Morocco to China. |
Sam Fogg, 15D Clifford Street, London, W1S www.samfogg.com |
| 06 October 2008 19:30 - 20:30 |
Literary Event: Exiled Lit Cafe - If Salt has Memory Jewish Exiled Writers including: Gregorio Kohon, poet and novelist from Argentina, author of Red Parrot, Wooden Leg and a new collection of poetry; Moris Farhi, award-winning poet and novelist born in Turkey, author of Young Turk translated into many languages, and other works; Bart Wolffe, eminent Zimbabwean playwright, poet and writer, author of Persona Non Grata and many other works. |
EXILED WRITERS INK! 22 Betterton Street, London, WC2 www.exiledwriters.co.uk |
| 07 - 25 October 2008 |
Exhibition: Routes A major exhibition in London of contemporary Middle Eastern and Arab art, Routes brings together 15 artists, both internationally known and emerging, in one groundbreaking show. |
Waterhouse & Dodd, 26 Cork Street, London, W1S www.artroutes.com |
| 07 October 2008 17:00 - 19:00 |
Lecture: Israeli-Palestinian Relations: resolving or sustaining conflict? Speaker: Rosemary Hollis, Olive Tree Programme. Part of the Tuesday Evening Lecture Series on the contemporary Middle East. |
School of Oriental and African Studies, Thornhaugh Street, London, WC1 www.lmei.soas.ac.uk |
| 07 October 2008 17:30 - 19:00 |
Lecture: Saharan Corridors and the Peopling of North Africa Dr. Marta Mirazon Lahr of the Leverhulme Centre for Human Evolutionary Studies, University of Cambridge will present a lecture, "Saharan Corridors and the Peopling of Northern Africa". |
British Academy, 10 Carlton House Terrace, London, SW1
www.britac.ac.uk |
| 08 October 2008 14:00 - 17:00 |
Seminar/Workshop: Showcasing the Muslim Civilisations Abstracts (MCA) Project Held by AKU-ISMC with the London Middle East Institute at SOAS, this interactive session will combine brief presentations and instructive training sessions. This session will be an opportunity for scholars and graduate students to discover the Muslim Civilisations Abstract project (MCA) and learn about new strategies of promoting Asian and African scholarship. |
Brunei Gallery, SOAS, Thornhaugh Street, Russell Square, London, WC1H
www.aku.edu |
| 13 - 27 October 2008 |
Exhibition: Crossroads The first UK exhibition of photographs by the celebrated Moroccan artist Lalla Essaydi. A 50 page catalogue available on request. |
Waterhouse & Dodd, 26 Cork Street, London, W1S
www.artroutes.com |
| 14 October 2008 17:30 - 19:30 |
Lecture: The Iraqi Women's Movement: negotiating women's rights under occupation Speaker: Nadje Al-Ali, SOAS Chair: Deniz Kandiyoti, SOAS. Part of the Tuesday Evening Lecture Series on the contemporary Middle East. |
School of Oriental and African Studies, Russell Square, London, WC1 www.lmei.soas.ac.uk |
| 21 October 2008 17:30 - 19:30 |
Lecture: ‘Brothers’ or Others? Propriety & Gender for Muslim Arab Sudanese in Egypt Speaker: Anita Fabos, University of East London Discussant: Barbara Harrell-Bond OBE; Chair: Nadje Al-Ali, SOAS. Part of the Tuesday Evening Lecture Series on the contemporary Middle East. |
School of Oriental and African Studies, Thornhaugh Street, London, WC1 www.lmei.soas.ac.uk |
| 21 October 2008 17:30 - 19:30 |
Lecture: CASAW Public Lecture on Arabic Prison Literature Working in partnership with the Centre for the Advanced Study of the Arab World, the festival hosts its first public lecture, presented by the Egyptian writer and academic Radwa Ashour. She has published seven novels, three collections of short stories and four books of literary criticism. Part One of her Granada Trilogy won the Cairo International Book Fair 1994 Book of the Year Award and the Trilogy won the First Prize of the First Arab Woman Book Fair in 1995. The Trilogy has been translated into both English and Spanish. Ashour was awarded the 2007 Constantine Cavafy International Prize for Literature. Join us for a fascinating insight into contemporary Arabic literature. Tickets: £5/£3 |
Manchester Town Hall, Albert Square, Manchester manchesterliteraturefestival.co.uk |
| 21 October 2008 19:30 - 20:30 |
Lecture: Stories from the Middle East The latest in Comma's city-story projects, Medina offers a set of diverse, often contradictory visions of the Middle East, spanning five languages and ten cities from around the region. These stories have been specially commissioned and translated for the window they open onto contemporary Middle Eastern life. Tonight's stories will be read in Arabic and English, accompanied by simultaneous translations and discussion. Joumana Haddad is a poet, journalist and editor. Her collections include The Time of a Dream, (1995), Invitation to a Secret Dinner (1998), Abyss (2000) and The Return of Lilith (2004). Hassan Blasim is a poet and filmmaker as well as short story writer, whose films include Dead Editions. Yousef Al-Mohaimeed’s novels include Al-Qaroura (‘The Bottle’), Wolves of the Crescent Moon and The Dolphin's Excursion - all of them are widely published in the Arab world but banned in his own country. Tickets: £5/£3 |
Manchester Town Hall, Albert Square, Manchester manchesterliteraturefestival.co.uk |
| 22 October 2008 17:30 - 19:30 |
Lecture: The Arabian Frontier of the British Raj: merchants, rulers and the British in the nineteenth century Speaker: James Onley is Director of the Gulf Studies programme and Senior Lecturer in Middle Eastern History at the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, University of Exeter. Organised by the Society for Arabian Studies (SAS) in association with the London Middle East Institute, SOAS (LMEI) |
School of Oriental and African Studies, Thornhaugh Street, London, WC1 www.lmei.soas.ac.uk |
| 28 October 2008 17:30 - 19:30 |
Lecture: Queen of the Oil Club: the intrepid Wanda Jablonski & the power of information, a biography of OPEC Speaker: Anna Rubino, Senior Reporter, OTR Global Chair: Ben Fortna, SOAS. Part of the Tuesday Evening Lecture Series on the contemporary Middle East. |
School of Oriental and African Studies, Thornhaugh Street, London, WC1 www.lmei.soas.ac.uk |
| 05 November 2008 13:00 - 14:00 |
Exhibition: Collecting the modern and contemporary art of the Middle East at the British Museum An AKU-ISMC lunch-hour lecture presented by Venetia Porter, Curator of the Islamic Collections in the Department of Asia, British Museum, UK. |
4 - 5 Bedford Square, London, WC1B 3RA www.aku.edu |
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