AWJ Exhibition opens to a big success
Exhibition to remain on display until Sept 1 MACE Alumni Association elects new office bearers
Evolution
Photos from the event
KUWAIT CITY, June 10: Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salem Cultural Centre held the opening reception of AWJ; an exhibition for Tunisian artist and calligrapher Nja Mahdaoui dedicated to his artistic career. The reception started with an Iftar meal for the guests, followed by a talk delivered by the artist himself along with a guided tour of the artworks. The centre was honored by the attendance of members of the diplomatic community and the and pleased to see a great turn out for this special event.
Mahdaoui opened his talk by saying “We have to ask the question: why do we draw? What are we drawing? Who is our audience? And does our society need this kind of education?” Starting from this idea, Mahadoui showed a comprehensive retrospective of his work.
Mahadoui expressed his thanks to the Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salem Cultural Centre for hosting this event and said “it is an honour to be here in this great place where we cannot say museum because they are many museums within one museum complex.”
Mahdaoui also noted, “Whoever appreciates culture also thinks about the development of civilization to its highest level and building these museums has opened a dialogue of culture and education, and without them, we cannot be moving forward.”
Ms Aziza Harmel, the curator of the exhibition explained, “Awj showcases Nja’s artwork which enabled me to understand the impact of the art scene in Tunisia and to trace the sources of certain art movements.”
Awj showcases 68 artworks by Mahdaoui; including a large number of paintings from his big hits since 1966 up to his most recent work in calligraphy. The exhibition will remain on display at the Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salem Cultural Centre’s Fine Arts Centre until Sept 1 where visitors will have the chance to explore how events during Mahdaoui’s life played a role in the evolution of his visual language.
The title AWJ refers to the Iraqi ‘maquam’, with a highly-spiritual quality. Unlike other maquamat’ which have fixed structures, Awj has an open form. This means that the performer determines the form according to his or her own taste of melodies. The title already sets the tone and rhythm of the exhibition where it allows the viewers’ imagination to take its course.
The installations and information
A photo from the event The new team of Office Bearers of MACEAA Kuwait Chapter was elected unanimously for the period 2018‘19, in the recently concluded Annual General Body meeting held at Seashell Julai’a Hotel & Resorts Kuwait on Friday, May 11, 2018 from 09:30 am to 09:30 pm.
The new committee members are: Chairman: Shaji Hassan; Secretary: Prince U. Cheria; Treasurer: Saju P.K.; KEF GC Designate – Abdul Sagee; KEF Arts Committee Convener – Sudheer M.G.; Arts Secretaries: Jacob Zachariah & Ms Anu Deline; Sports Secretaries: Joice Peter & Akash G. Ramanan; Area Representatives: Mangaf – Joseph George, Mahboula — Nibu Vijayan, Abu Halifa – Jose George, Abbassiya – Maneesh M. Nair, Riggae & Farwaniya – Manoj Joseph, Salmiya – Ms Bindu Finney & Dr Jose Kaitharam; Auditor – Ms Sally Roy.
Ladies Forum Members: Ms Shabnam Sageer (President), Ms Donia Georgy (Secretary) & Ms Haripriya Suresh (Treasurer). The election proceedings were controlled by P.C. George & Salu John.
The Annual General Body Meeting was remarkable by the huge number and active participation of all the members, as the association steps into its 37th year as a leading Keralite Engineers Alumni Association in Kuwait. The Chairman Jyothidas P.N., presided over the general body meeting, Jibi Joseph (General Secretary) presented annual report and Sandeep Damodaran (Treasurer) presented financial report for the year 2017-‘18.
In the function, a warm farewell was given to Sasi Kodanad as he is leaving Kuwait on 24th May 2018 after his long 40 years of service in Kuwait.
A skit portraying the life of Sasi Kodanand was performed by MACEAA Kuwait Chapter to honor him on the occasion as he and his wife Ms Shyla Sasi are leaving Kuwait to their home place at Kodanad (Kerala).
The AGM and the inception of the new committee members were followed with various cultural and fun filled activities like solo & group songs, dances, instrument music performances, skit, barbequing, beach swimming etc.