HALAQAT
Exploring cultural links between Europe and the Arab world​

[Text & Experts in Round Table Discussions]

Halaqat means "circles" or "links". Its spirit is to consolidate meeting points and build bridges between Europe and the Arab world. From residencies for artists working in the visual arts, performing arts, music and cinema, to public debates and roundtables, each activity in this project is designed and carried out through dialogue and exchange between the two shores of the Mediterranean, leading to new synergies being created through the complementarity of their perspectives and histories.
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Photos : Caroline Lessire
The programme consists of three components: 
  • Creation: residency programmes bring together European and Arab artists with distinct backgrounds in Brussels in a process of artistic creation;
  • Presentation of artistic activities: film screenings, concerts, performances, art installations, and the presentation of works created at the end of the residencies;
  • Reflection on cultural relations: experts and cultural operators from Europe and the Arab world met on several occasions with a view to developing closer cultural and artistic cooperation between Europe and the Arab world.
A veritable laboratory of human and artistic experiences, Halaqat offers an unprecedented space for immersion and creation where each person can set out to discover the riches of others. This is a model based on the welcoming acceptance of otherness in the midst of a changing world.
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​Our role: ​

We were invited to participate in a trans-disciplinary team of experts and cultural professionals from Europe and the Arab world, who met throughout the project in a series of roundtable discussions on various issues around the development of closer cultural and artistic cooperation between Europe and the Arab world.
Contribution in the final publication with a text on Fair Cultural Relations ("East-West-North-South", p. 210)
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Experts:
Abd Al Hadi ABUNAHLEH, 
Founder & Director of Studio 8, Artistic Director and Curator of IDEA Festival (Jordan)
Mojeb AL ZAHRANI, 
Director general, Institut du Monde Arabe (France)
Shiran BEN ABDERRAZAK, 
Executive Director, Rambourg Foundation (Tunisia) 
Khaled BOUZIDI, 
Director, Rhizome (Algeria)
Lydia CHATZIIAKOVOU, 
Co-Director of ArtBOX Experimental Agency (Greece)
Jean-François CHOUGNET, 
President, MuCEM - Musée des Civilisations de l'Europe et de la Méditerranée (France)
Kathrin DEVENTER, 
Secretary general, European Festivals Association (EFA) (Belgium) 
Khadija EL BENNAOUI, 
Independent Programmer and Curator / Head of Performing Arts, Abu Dhabi Cultural Foundation (United Arab Emirates)  
Basma EL HUSSEINY, 
Director, Action for Hope (Leganon/Belgium)
Ahmed ELLAITHY, 
Cairotronica / Senior Director of Technology Transfer, The American University in Cairo (Egypt)
Brahim EL MAZNED, 
Founder, Festival Visa for Music (Morocco) 
Silja FISCHER, 
Secretary general, International Music Council (France)
Nedjma HADJ BENCHELABI, 
Independent Curator and Cultural Operator, Program Coordinator of Mahmoud Darwish Chair (Belgium)
Jowe HARFOUCHE,
​Executive Director, NAAS – Network of Arab Alternative Screens (Germany)
Rama HALASEH, 
Former Manager Middle East and North Africa Program, Open Society Foundations (Jordan) 
Jowe HARFOUCHE, 
Executive Director, NAAS - Network of Arab Alternative Screens (Germany/Lebanon)
Lama HAZBOUN, 
Founder and Director, Amman Jazz Festival / Managing Director, OrangeRed (Jordan) 
Sonja HEGASY,
​Vice Director, Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient (ZMO) / Guest professor for Postcolonial Studies, Barenboim-Said Akademie (Germany)
Marwa HELMY, 
Unesco expert for the 2005 Convention for Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (Egypt) 
Sabrina KAMILI, 
Cultural actor / Responsible for development and partnerships within L’Observatoire - Art & Research / Co-founder, K&Co (Morocco)
Ammar KESSAB, 
Senior Governance Expert, African Development Bank (AfDB) (Morocco) 
Ghita KHALDI, 
Manager of cultural projects / Founder and current president of Afrikayna (Morocco)
Mylène LAUZON, 
Director, La Bellone (Belgium)
Mikaël MOHAMED, 
Head of International Relations, Mucem (France) 
Elena POLIVTSEVA, 
Head of Policy and Research, International Network for Contemporary Performing Arts (IETM) (Belgium) 
Mohab SABER, 
Regional Coordinator All-Around Culture, MitOst (Germany) 
Christos SAVVIDIS, 
Founding Director of ArtBOX Experimental Agency (Greece)
Fida TOUMA, 
Director general, A M Qattan Foundation (Palestine) 
Luka PIŠKORIČ,
​Co-founder and Managing Director of Poligon (Slovenia)

Moderator of Experts round-tables: Sana OUCHTATI, 
Independent Expert and Adviser on international cultural relations and partnership development (Belgium)​
Brussels, Belgium
​2022-2023

Organised by: Goethe-Institut and Bozar 
Co-funded by: the European Union

Partners: Cinemaximiliaan, Atelier Graphoui, Sound Image Culture - SIC, iMAL, Cairotronica, San3atech FabLab Egypt, Werkplaats Walter, Amman Jazz Festival, Théâtre Marni, Studio 8, La Bellone and the Ad’Hoc Platform.

Experts:
Abd Al Hadi ABUNAHLEH,
Mojeb AL ZAHRANI,
Shiran BEN ABDERRAZAK,
Khaled BOUZIDI,
Lydia CHATZIIAKOVOU,
Jean-François CHOUGNET,
Kathrin DEVENTER,
Khadija EL BENNAOUI,  
Basma EL HUSSEINY,
Ahmed ELLAITHY,
Brahim EL MAZNED, 
Silja FISCHER,
Nedjma HADJ BENCHELABI,
Jowe HARFOUCHE,
Rama HALASEH,
Jowe HARFOUCHE,
Lama HAZBOUN, 
Sonja HEGASY, 
Marwa HELMY,
Sabrina KAMILI,
Ammar KESSAB,
Ghita KHALDI,
Mylène LAUZON,
Mikaël MOHAMED,
Elena POLIVTSEVA,
Mohab SABER,
Christos SAVVIDIS,
Fida TOUMA,
Luka PIŠKORIČ

Moderator of Experts round-tables: 
Sana OUCHTATI

Publication Halaqat

Lessons for the Future
Mobility, Funding, Crisis as a Permanent State, Fair Cultural Relations, Sharing of Expertise. These five topics were the end point of the Lessons for the Future the Halaqat experts drafted together in Brussels in May 2022. These Lessons for the Future have established the path by which improved cultural relations between Europe and the Arab world can be achieved.