BEIRUT: At the end of this month, anyone chancing to walk through Beirut Souks will stumble upon a wide range of objects, all displayed in the open air. They will soon know they have found AFKART. This yearly summer event – part of Beirut Designers’ Week – seeks to promote the art and other handiwork of young, emerging artists, craftsmen and fashion designers from around Lebanon. AFKART Public Relations Manager Maha Kazan spoke to The Daily Star about the objectives of, and the challenges confronting, organizers in putting together this year’s event.
Q: When was AFKART founded and what are its objectives?
A: I’m the organizer of AFKART. The organizer is in fact Beirut Association for Social Development. We organize this [event] and do the selection. We’ve been working on this project since 2002. We started before in 2000 on a smaller scale and then it grew bigger.
Its aim is to promote Lebanese designers; to help them meet the public, to let them interfere with a larger public. Most of them don’t have shops.
We started this mission as a communication project. The idea is for development, culture. Most of the designers are women, but there are a few men designers. There will be everything in the exhibition.
The nice thing about AFKART is that many of them are settled. They are known in Beirut. They grew up here. It’s a family spirit. Sometimes we do exhibitions abroad where they travel with us. ... Some of them are well established. They are [also] giving workshops [during] the exhibition ...
The [interesting] thing about AFKART is that there are new designers who are still at university, for example. Some of them have been doing this exhibition for a long time and others have stopped [participating].
Q: Did you have any financial trouble to organize this year’s edition?
A: BankMed has always given us their support. Now, everything has become much more expensive, but we need to go on. In BASD, we [established] a center for disabled children [in Badaro] called “Al-Majal,” which helps these children with activities also. If there are profits [from AFKART] they will go to this center.
Q: Have you noticed any differences in the type of art exhibited? Are the Middle Eastern artists influenced in their designs by the situation in the region?
A: We feel that there used to be much more in the artistic part – such as paintings. Now, it’s fashion designs which are [developing] more.
What we feel from the designers is that the Lebanese are divided between their Middle Eastern origins and the fact that they traveled a lot, studied abroad. So, it is very mixed between Middle Eastern and Western [influences.] But it [results] in nice [pieces].
There is also an economic problem. [Many] are afraid to invest because they say that nobody will buy.
Q: How many artists will participate in this year’s AFKART?
A: Around 100 from every field – fashion, accessories design, clothing, paintings, crafts, traditional art. Most of them are from Lebanon. We would have liked to have some [contributors] from abroad but there is a risk of inviting them. [Lebanon’s security] situation is not helping us.
The idea for this year was to show each country’s designs, but we couldn’t do it because of the [security] situation. And we have two fashion shows from designers who started with AFKART – like Paula K. and Atelier G. by Grace Rihan. They have very nice stuff. And we have painting-on-wood workshops with Nevine Mattar. And Ashekman will be giving an Arabic graffiti workshop.
We’re trying to include music. There will be a food court and a kid zone. It is a family exhibition where everybody can come and enjoy themselves.
Q: Did you have any specific criteria for the selection of the designers/artists selected for AFKART?
A: We want things to be handmade. If not, they have to be made in Lebanon. It should be designed in Lebanon, except for designers coming from abroad. The point [of AFKART] is to show the artistic work of the people here, what they can give. And it is important to see how they started and what they became now.
AFKART takes place in Beirut Souks from June 26-30. For more info, please call 01-566-707 or visit the AFKART Facebook page.
By Chirine Lahoud
The Daily Star
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Culture/Art/2013/Jun-15/220407-afkart-showcases-art-crafts-and-designs-made-in-lebanon.ashx