Art Jameel is celebrating the first annual exhibition at the Jameel House of Traditional Arts / Jeddah, opening on June 6, 2017. The exhibition marks the end of the first one-year programme of the Jameel House of Traditional Arts / Jeddah. The exhibition will display the final projects of the 18 participants who worked for a month on a single piece, drawing on the different modules and crafts they have explored throughout the year, each creating a major work of art in the language of the traditional arts. The exhibition will run until June 15.

Fady Mohammed Jameel, President of Art Jameel, explained, “We are thrilled to be able to celebrate the first Annual Exhibition at the Jameel House of Traditional Arts / Jeddah. Art Jameel’s role is to support arts, education and heritage in the Middle East, and this exhibition is a platform to do just that. The fact it showcases local talent and is taking place in Jeddah, our home city, fills me with immense pride.”

The participating artisans include Bahaa Abolenin, Denise Aboushoushah, Sahrish Ali, Rana Amoudi, Yusra Alanesi, Rania Badrig, Eman Albanjari, Salwa Bashammakh, Stephanie Delfour Berroche, Dania Gazzaz, Haneen Alhamdan, Afraa Alhazmi, Hanaan Jamal, Bayan Makki, Noura Almalouh, Carla Roma, Deema Sharbatly, and Deema Showail. The works on display reflect the diversity of media – woodwork, ceramics, painting and gypsum – and projects – from miniatures and tiles, through to clocks, tables and games.

Antonia Carver, Director of Art Jameel, said: “We’re delighted with the outcome of the one-year programme. The participants managed to translate the modules into state-of-art pieces. The modules in the programme were delivered by the Prince’s School of Traditional Arts and included geometry and nabati design, as well as the crafts of mangour, gypsum carving and ceramics. We are so excited for the second year of the Jameel House of Traditional Arts / Jeddah, which will start in Autumn 2017. Applications have increased by 50% compared to last year.” 

The Jameel House of Traditional Arts / Jeddah opened in 2015 and began its first one-year programme in September 2016.  As a partnership between Art Jameel, the Prince’s School of Traditional Arts and the Saudi Arabian Society for Culture and Arts, the Jameel House of Traditional Arts / Jeddah offers a programme that focuses on Islamic geometry, patterns and design, nabati ornaments, colour harmony and decorative techniques, woodwork, gypsum-carving and other traditional crafts within the rich architectural heritage of the Old Town. 

The Jameel House of Traditional Arts / Jeddah engages with the local community through a calendar of public workshops and evening classes, and participation in the lively festivals of the Old Town.  With strong ties to the historic buildings and the richly cosmopolitan past of Jeddah, the Jameel House of Traditional Arts / Jeddah is at the very centre of efforts to preserve the Old Town, its ancient traditions, and its unique way of life.

The exhibition is taking place at the Jameel House of Traditional Arts / Jeddah behind Al-Mimar Mosque, off Al-Dahab Street in the Old Town.

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