Studio Hilal invites us to their special Mehmooni: Introducing the artisanal design studio by creative sisters Zuhra and Moshtari Hilal, inspired by joint family memories and a love for illustration and textiles.
Read More
‘Symbioses’, the filmmaker’s latest short art film, addresses growing up mixed race and harks to the beauty of filming with natural light at sunrise: here, Sarah walks us through the behind-the-scenes creation of the film.
Read More
Farihah Chowdhury takes us through the Bengali history of Brick Lane as developers seek to efface its legacy to accomodate a rising gentrified sensibility.
Read More
Ravinder Kaur takes us through the trials and tribulations of self-taught South Asian sex education through the eyes of Bollywood and explores how new media might finally be improving intimacy narratives.
Read More
We speak to Rotana, the US-based, Saudi-Palestinian artist committed to exploring her truth. Rotana gives us an insight of her journey into the music industry and reveals the driving forces behind her hilarious new educational IGTV series, “F*D & Blessed”.
Read More
We caught up with Sri Lankan-Norwegian designer, model & creative Maneesha Pere Gallage to discover more about her dynamic background, how she ties in her Sri Lankan heritage to her work, and what inspires her.
Read More
Following the release of their new poetry anthology, ‘Emerge(ncy)’, we had the joy of speaking to Sudanese writer and poet Nour K. about how poetry can act as the meeting of the personal and the political, about the power of imagination and explored the stifling of nuanced identities.
Read More
After the passing of Nawal El Saadawi, one of the greatest feminist revolutionaries, earlier this year, Hannah La Ronde questions how women are keeping Saadawi’s movement alive, using not only powerful words but inciting meaningful actions globally in order to affect their communities and uplift women around them.
Read More
Sahar Esfandiari chats to the founders of Emergeast, the first online gallery dedicated to showcasing emerging artists from the MENA region. They take Sahar through their journeys in the art world and the reasons behind establishing their platform.
Read More
With a powerfully sobering voice, Nisreen Bajis discusses the importance of her Palestinian heritage. She explores why, this time, the fight against Palestinian cultural erasure is stronger than ever due to the rise of social media’s wide-reaching records of forced, illegal Israeli settlements.
Read More
New-York based Photographer Queena Yan recreates scenes from In the Mood For Love by Wong Kar-Wai, in honour of Asian Americans during Pride month. Documenting the relationship of Trish Do and Gui Trang, Queena dedicates the series to those brave enough to honour their traditions while embracing their true selves.
Read More
Daytimers were underground Bhangra and bass-filled raves that took place in broad daylight across the UK. Thousands of Desi youth would attend these parties as a way to break from conservative family traditions in the 1980s and early 1990s. They also paved the way for female DJs and performers from the South Asian diaspora.
Read More
Inspired by her upbringing as a Palestinian refugee, Jordan-based street artist Laila Ajjawi creates provocative murals that question inequality in the Middle East. She’s one of the few female creatives in the male-dominated field of political graffitiing in the region - but she’s not afraid to take up space.
Read More
Designer Lorin Mai shares her latest film Pastoral through her brand Vertigo, a visual poem where the brand's garments meet meticulously arranged sets and a subtle audio landscape depicting Syrian/Kurdish everyday life — the main source of inspiration for Vertigo.
Read More
Neena Roe talks to Sheefteh Khalili, the current owner of CalEarth Institute - a non-profit organisation dedicated to finding solutions for the global housing shortage in California, touching on her childhood and Iranian heritage.
Read More
Najla Said explores alternative representations of womanhood in Cairo through a very personal visual series. With each image, Najla gathers scenes from visual culture in Egypt, unpicks and comments on the paternalist representation of women.
Read More
TRIGGER WARNING: sexual violence and rape
This piece explores blame fatigue and confusion faced by rape victims. An anonymous member of the AZEEMA community shares the ways she is overcoming the scars left by her rapist, and encourages readers to join her in being more open with the topic.
Read More
Lamia Barakat takes us through Sis Gurdal’s short film Postcards From the Orient which is a critique of the European colonial gaze as it explores the position of the “Eastern” woman portrayed in Orientalist paintings in the 16th and 17th century.
Read More
Michele Theil reflects on cherished memories of past Lunar New Year celebrations, as she observes it in an unfamiliar way this year. She talks us through the importance of the holiday, and shares moments that bring her joy.
Read More
Janine AlHadidi takes us through inspiring new narratives within Middle Eastern and international cinema created by Arab women in film. This includes Nadine Labaki, Mai Masri, and Yawmon Akher. We've seen Arab women in front of the camera for decades, but what about behind the camera?
Read More