During the past two months, and as part of Darat al Funun’s Lab program and theme exploring collections and archives, researcher Heba Masad worked with a group of workshop participants to explore the archives of Al-Arabi magazine from 1967 to 1973, and to option and select articles that reflect meanings of home and belonging, for a series of public collective reading over the period of three weeks. The reading sessions included looking into the texts, in-depth discussions, and sharing individual and collective reflections.

The open studio invites audiences into the results of the workshop, showcasing reflections, research and reading materials, as well as the digital archive of the magazine and a selection of the magazine’s physical archive covering the years under study in the workshop.

Participants: Aysha Abughazi, Bashar Al-Idreesi, Dima Masri, Duha Abu Yahya, Jinan Silwadi, Muna Mufti, Safaa Abu Eid, Thaer Matar, Zaina Bassam, Zainab Ishaqat.

The Digital Archive: Al-Sharekh Archives. 

The Physical Archive: Saeed Mahmoud Al-Nasser.

Hiba Masad studied visual arts at the University of Jordan between 2008 and 2012, specializing in printmaking. Over the past eight years, Masad worked as an activity specialist at the Shoman Foundation, where she ran several workshops and activities. During those years, Masad continued her personal art practice in the form of drawing, printmaking, and text reading. Masad recently obtained her Master’s Degree in Arts in performing public space from FHK in the Netherlands, where her research focused on collective readings, and resulted in launching an initiative to create a community of collective readers in public spaces in Jordan.