The Lakes International Comic Art Festival has given a warm welcome to our ARTIVATOR fellows for 2024 to the Lake District – Sarwar Taha, from Kurdistan, Iraq, SalahEddin AlQawasmi, from Jordan, and Sliman Mukarker from Palestine.
ARTIVATOR is a new Art Management Incubator initiated by British Council – MENA, aimed at building the capacity of cultural practitioners from the MENA region. The initiative aims to provide opportunities of training, mentoring, and networking, in collaboration with regional and UK partners, to help participants acquire the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in the arts industry, providing them with a bespoke experience. Participants benefit from access to a network of arts professionals, as well as resources and support from various partners, including the Lakes International Comic Art Festival.
Through its work, the incubator aims to promote the development of a vibrant and sustainable arts sector in the MENA region. By supporting emerging arts managers, it hopes to create a new generation of leaders who are equipped to navigate the challenges of the industry and drive its growth and innovation.
The Fellowship focuses on the three-week run-up to this year’s Lakes International Comic Art Festival (27th – 29th September 2024), with one-to-one and group sessions focusing on particular skills and areas of knowledge.
Arts manager Sarwar Taha began his career at Kashkul, the centre of Arts and culture at the American University of Iraq Sulaimani. After making himself fluent with the arts industry in Iraq, he applied to Chevening scholarships and was bestowed the UK’s FCDO grants to pursue a Master's degree in Arts Policy and Cultural Management at Birkbeck, University of London. He finished the program successfully and returned to Iraq with a main goal to leverage his newfound knowledge and skills to enrich the artistic landscape in Iraq and Kurdistan, becoming Director of Special Projects at Kashkul. In this role, he spearheaded a number of collaborative initiatives beyond their established cultural projects, partnering with international translators to bring Kurdish and Arabic poetry into English and Spanish, supporting archiving efforts amid Iraq's environmental and conflict-related challenges, and curating the Melodies of Nations music festival, which attracted twenty thousand attendees and featured twelve music groups from countries neighbouring Iraq.
As part of ongoing dedication to safeguarding Iraq's oral heritage, Sarwar and his team are building upon past initiatives such as Mosul Lives and Sinjar Lives. These projects entail conducting interviews with residents of Mosul and Sinjar, capturing their experiences before the ISIS rule and the US invasion, thereby preserving not just the physical structures but also the essence of these cities. This year, Kashkul, in collaboration with the institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter have received generous funding from the British Council's Cultural Protection Fund to collect and promote Mosulawi Maqam, an endangered Iraqi musical heritage due to years of war and displacement including the last attacks by ISIS.
This oral history project will culminate in 2025 in a festival to celebrate Maqam in Mosul, that it’s hoped will raise awareness and promote Maqam for local and international audiences. As part of the festival, Kashkul will publish a graphic novel by an all women team in four community languages spoken locally, highlighting the inclusive narrative of Maqam stories, with a focus on female practitioners who are often overlooked.
“My primary motivation for applying to the Artivator fellowship lies in its collaboration with LICAF, which boasts over a decade of experience curating and exhibiting comics,” says Sarwar. “Given the nascent state of comics in Iraq, I am eager to learn from LICAF's expertise and gain hands-on experience from seasoned professionals to deliver a festival that showcases comics as a distinct art form with vast potential.”
SalahEddin AlQawasmi from Amman, Jordan is an artist and an aspiring arts and cultural manager, driven by a profound belief in the transformative power of art and its ability to lead positive change. He has organized TEDx events and co-founded an artist collective called Metafour, its focus on cultural management with an emphasis on art, while also integrating technology into artistic practices. He recentky helped organise an artist residency titled “Digital Transmissions” with the Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts, which culminated in a three-day event showcasing the works of 12 residents alongside their mentors' works, connecting Jordanian and UK artists together.
Drawing on his artistic background, SalahEddin infuses creativity into every aspect of his work, whether that’s through interactive elements or compelling narratives, striving to ensure that each exhibition and event he helps organise resonates deeply with visitors, sparking meaningful connections with the displayed artworks.
“I am genuinely excited about the prospect of participating in the fellowship.” he says, “as it represents a unique opportunity for me to further my career in arts management while contributing to the advancement of the global arts community.”
Born in Bethlehem in 1994, Sliman Mukarker has been involved in various cultural and artistic projects within his community. He earned an intermediate diploma in filmmaking in 2014 and studied cultural management in 2016. Sliman began his journey in media during middle school, working as a TV and radio presenter in 2007.
In 2012, Sliman co-founded Power Group with the late Nabil Hammouz, which focuses on the field of audio-visual productions and training, and artistic projects, to support the skills and aspirations of teenagers and youth. He currently works as the artistic and administrative director of the Al-Makhrour International Festival and "A' Al-Daraj" Festival.
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