In collaboration with PYT Fairfield and the Afghan artistic community, we present Art for Afghanistan, a series of short video reflections that celebrate 5 Afghan artists, their art and their stories.
At this years’ Sydney Festival PYT presented Dorr-e Dari: A Poetic Crash Course In The Language of Love. In response to the recent tragic events in Afghanistan, PYT hosted an online event called A Love Letter to our Watan, building off the work they made with Dorr-e Dari. And earlier this year Belvoir presented Stop Girl by Sally Sara, which chronicled Sally’s experience as a foreign correspondent returning home to Australia from Afghanistan.
Art For Afghanistan builds on these projects, to create short form content that celebrates Afghan culture and artistry, and aims to raise funds for Action Aid’s emergency response through an auction of the artists’ work. The artists have been curated by Bibi Goul Mossavi, and their videos will be released over the next 10 days on social media and this page.
The featured artists include Bibi Goul Mossavi (beading), Elyas Alavi (painting and poetry), Jalal Nazari (calligraphy), Arefa Hassani (‘thread painting’ and embroidery), and Lemah Orya (ceramic sculptures). Each artist will also share a favourite poem.
FUNDRAISING AND AUCTION
Art For Afghanistan celebrates Afghan culture and artistry, and aims to raise much needed funds for Afghanistan. An auction for the artists’ works will be live from 5-8 October 2021 once all 5 videos showcasing the artists and their stories are released. You can bid for these artworks created by each of the artists, with the starting bid going to the artists and anything raised over going to Action Aid.
If you do not wish to or are unsuccessful in your bid for these artworks, you can still help support the fund-raising efforts by simply donating to Action Aid Fundraiser through the auction page.
In our first video, Bibi Goul Mossavi joins us from her living room in Old Guildford, Sydney where she traces the roots of her artistic practices, reflects on her duty as an Afghan Australian artist in these times, and shares a spiritual Persian poem with us.
In our second video reflection, Lemah Orya sits under her favourite tree in her mother’s garden, speaks to us about the hope behind her intricate sculptures and shares a short poem by Rumi.
In our third video Arefa Hassani, sitting in her plant-filled bedroom in Adelaide, reflects on the nostalgic effects of her embroidery practice, shares a defiant poem and reminds us that art is the common thread to unite us in this increasingly divisive world.
Our fourth video comes from Jalal Nazari who, following the fall of Kabul was forced to flee to Kiev, Ukraine, leaving his calligraphy materials behind as he did. Jalal shares how creating art is a form of mediation, a way of practicing peace and a tool for creating meaning in life and recites a poem by Hakim Omar Khayyam about living mindfully.
In our final video Elyas Alavi joins us from his home in Adelaide, having just returned from a residency in Coober Pedy and Oodnadatta. He reflects on the repetitive nature of history, expresses the hope he has for his art and recites an original poem in Farsi and English.
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