National Museums in the Global North have come under critical scrutiny for being racist, holding stolen artefacts and for misrepresenting indigenous communities. Calls for decolonization and social justice have taken the museum as its central site for reimagining a more just society. But what exactly is the promise of the museum? What kind of social role and function does the museum fulfill in the nation-state? How does it -as is often assumed- aid democratization of knowledge and the practice of citizenship? Do museums in the Global South, and in the Middle East specifically, play a different role in society? And finally, can museums generate a more just society? 

This workshop will consider these questions by introducing participants first to the current debates & theoretical literature coming out of anthropology & museum studies. In the discussion of this literature, participants will be a) familiarized with the museum as a technology of governance emergent with the nation-state and b) with the current attempts to decolonize, dismantle and re-imagine a more just museum. Here, we will ask what participation in the museum is, by scrutinizing exhibition, conservation, and curation practices. In the second part of the workshop, we will scrutinize different kinds of museums more closely. Our scrutiny will range from anthropology museums to national galleries and memorial sites in Europe, the US, and the Arab World. We will take our previously asked questions into these cases and explore the limits and possibilities of the museum in various social and political contexts. Can museums generate a more just society? If so, what kind of social justice does it generate?

Renowned calligrapher, Hussein Alaazat, joined Sijal students for a calligraphy workshop. Hussein spoke about both classical Arabic calligraphy and modern Arabic typography, introduced students to his work and gave them the opportunity to try out some calligraphy styles themselves. Participants left the workshop with their own Alaazat works, and a greater appreciation for the art of calligraphy.

Learn more about Hussein Alaazat and his works by visiting his gallery here: http://alazaat.com/

شاركنا الخطاط القدير حسين الأزعط في حصة خاصة لطلابنا ليعلّمهم أساسيات فن الخط العربي. حسين قام بإيضاح الفروقات بين الخط العربي الكلاسيكي القديم والخطوط الحديثة ثم قام طلابنا بتجربة الخط بأنفسهم كما خرجوا بهدايا خاصة من عمل الأزعط

“Every empire, however, tells itself and the world that it is unlike all other empires, that its mission is not to plunder and control but to educate and liberate” - Edward Said, 2003

In this seminar, we are going to address Postcolonial Theory from the perspective of international relations. As a diverse and rich tradition of scholarship and activism, Postcolonial Theory has in fact impacted and influenced a variety of different fields of inquiry, including comparative literature, anthropology, sociology, history, philosophy and cultural studies. Within the discipline of International Relations, issues of post- and neo-colonialism struggled to surface at first, while becoming gradually an essential contribution to a more critical and reasoned understanding of our world.

Dr. Mahmoud Al Batal offered a three-day teacher training focusing on the teaching of all linguistic skills using the integrated approach. He stressed the importance of creating a communicative and collaborative learning experience for students.

Our students enjoyed trying their hands at Arabic calligraphy in a session led by the talented Ruba Abu Shousheh.

استمتع طلابنا بورشة الخط العربي التي بادرت المبدعة ربا أبو شوشه بها في معهد سجال.