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Join us on Thursday 24th July from 6pm to 8pm for a discussion and Q&A with visual artists Malak Mattar and Sawsan Al-Areeqe, hosted by writer and researcher Esraa Husain from U Belong Glasgow.

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We will explore how creative expressions act as a tool for resistance, documentation and archiving in contexts of forced displacement and exile, with a focus on Sawsan’s poetic and cinematic work rooted in Yemen and Malak’s vivid painting practice and writings shaped by life in Gaza, Palestine.

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The event is framed by the ethos of U Belong Glasgow; a multilingual community platform established in 2020.  that supports and uplifts BPOC, Queer, and disabled creatives through collaborative events that centre wellbeing, community building and empowerment. This event is a collaboration with Race, Rights & Sovereignty, under the strand ‘What Will Be the Cure?'.

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Sawsan Al-Areeqe is an Arab writer and filmmaker based in Glasgow. She is the author of four poetry collections: More Than Necessary (2004), The Square of Pain (2007) - which received the 2007 Lebanon Literature Award - and What if My Blood Turned Into Chocolate (2011) which won the Creative Award in Yemen. Her fourth collection, Expired Death, was written during her Artist Protection Fund Fellowship at the University of Glasgow in 2019. Sawsan has also held a writer’s residence position in the USA, following an invitation from Iowa University’s International Writing Program. Currently, by Cross Borders commissioning, Sawsan has finished her fifth book.

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Malak Mattar is a Palestinian painter, illustrator, and author of children's books from Gaza. Mattar began painting during the 2014 Gaza War. In 2016, Mattar's art was exhibited at the Palestine Museum in Bristol and in 2019, Mattar's art was exhibited at the Palestine Museum in Connecticut. In 2021 Mattar wrote and illustrated a children's book called, Grandma's Bird. As of 2022, Mattar's artwork had been shown in 80 countries. She had a solo exhibition of her work at Garden Court Chambers in London, becoming the first Palestinian artist whose work was exhibited at the institution.

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Esraa Husain is a creative writer, community organiser and researcher based in Glasgow. Their writings are published online and in print in The Skinny, Scottish BPOC Writers Network, Gutter, Somewhere for Us and more. Their PhD is in migrancy, political agency and decoloniality in Black Scottish writing at the University of Glasgow. Esraa’s community work includes the following: U Belong Glasgow, a multilingual community platform that features LGBT+, BPOC and disabled creatives, est. 2020. Just Active project with LEAP Sports Scotland, supporting LGBTIQA+ asylum seekers and refugees to stay active in Glasgow and Refugee Festival Scotland, programming Building Solidarity & Kinship hybrid strand that spans film, poetry, sound, movement and well-being events between the Central Belt, the Highlands and online.

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This event is part of the Race, Rights & Sovereignty ‘What Will Be the Cure?’ strand. ‘What Will Be the Cure?’ is a programme strand geared towards artists and practitioners who wish to collectivise, experiment, and conspire towards transformative change. Race, Rights and Sovereignty is a programme supported by the GSA Students Association in partnership with GSA Exhibitions.

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‘Race, Rights and Sovereignty programme’ is now in its sixth year. It was established as a partnership between The Art School: GSA's Students' Association (GSASA) and GSA Exhibitions. The programme has been developed in order to create opportunities, and forums, to engage with and unpack ideas and issues related to race, rights & sovereignty; particularly in the contexts of creative practice. The series aims to celebrate, challenge, inform and inspire the next generation of artists, designers and architects, empowering them to have a creative voice. ​