"Encyclopedia of Arab American Artists. Artists of the American Mosaic" (Greenwood Press, 2008) Has won an Arab American Book Award for 2009 given by the Arab American National Museum (AANM).
To see the 2009 Winners Page, you can visit
http://www.arabamericanmuseum.org/2009bookawardwinners
فائق عويس في برنامج موعد في المهجر على قناة الجزيرة
Fayeq Oweis on Al-Jazeera
Aljazeera Arabic Channel featured a biographical program about my art work and projects, my teaching, activities, and writing, in their well-known program "Maw'id fii al-mahjar"
ZAWAYA Proudly Presents a New Art Exhibit curated by Fayeq Oweis:
The Works of Mohammed Al Sadoun
Reception: Thursday June 21, 2007
6:00 – 9:00 PM
Exhibit runs through July 20, 2007
At the Arab Cultural & Community Center
2 Plaza Street, San Francisco, CA 94116
Tel: 415-664-2200
Mohammed Al Sadoun is an Iraqi painter and conceptual artist. He holds a Ph.D. from Ohio State University and has exhibited his work nationally and internationally. His work involves using unconventional materials and concepts including burning books, doors and furniture. His choice of such objects is "both testimony and silent protest against aggression in all its forms, including global dominance." Al Sadoun explores many issues including the war on Iraq, the destruction of homes in the time of war, protesting the censorship, the lack of freedom of expression and human rights in the Middle East. He is also a researcher and a historian of modern Arab art, especially contemporary Iraqi art, and has given numerous lectures and presentations about the subject at academic institutions and cultural centers.
for more info, contact Zawaya info@zawaya.org
The Jerusalem Fund Gallery Presents...
Handala and the Cartoons of Naji Al-Ali
with a presentation by
Dr. Fayeq Oweis
Friday, 18 May 2007
6:30 – 8:30 p.m.
(presentation begins at 7:15 p.m.)
This exhibit is being held in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of Naji al-Ali’s assassination. The cartoons have been generously provided by his son, Khalid al-Ali.
The late Palestinian cartoonist, Naji al-Ali, produced over 40,000 cartoons satirizing the powers that be in the Middle East. Emerging from humble beginnings in the refugee camps, for over 30 years he was an uncompromising critic of a regressive Arab political culture and of Western intervention in Arab affairs. As one of the most popular artists in the Arab world, he was loved for his defense of ordinary people and for his criticism of despotism and repression. His unrelenting cartoons exposed the brutality of the Israeli army and earned him many powerful enemies. He developed a stark, symbolic style in his work and is perhaps best known as creator of the character Handala, who has since become an icon of Palestinian struggle and steadfastness. Al-Ali was killed on July 22, 1987 by an unknown assassin as he left the London offices of Al Qabbas newspaper.
Dr. Fayeq Oweis is an Arab American artist and professor of Arabic Language and Culture at Santa Clara University in Santa Clara, California. He has a Ph.D. in interdisciplinary studies with a focus on Arabic and Islamic arts and has published extensively and gave numerous presentations on Arabic Language and Culture, Islamic Arts and Arabic Calligraphy, and Arab American Artists. His presentation, delivered in conjunction with the exhibit, will explore the relevance, characters and symbols of Naji al-Ali’s work.
The exhibit will remain on view through 31 August 2007
This event is free and open to the public. Registration is not required to attend. Gallery hours: M – F, 9am – 5pm, or by appointment.
The Jerusalem Fund Gallery Presents...
The Art of Arabic Calligraphy
with a presentation & workshop by
Dr. Fayeq Oweis
Saturday, 19 May 2007
10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Workshop Fee: $20.00 per participant (covers instruction, materials and lunch)
Non-Arabic speakers welcome!
Registration Deadline: Wednesday 16 May 2007 - registration details below
Arabic calligraphy is an artistic tradition of extraordinary beauty, richness and power. It links the literary heritage of the Arabic language with the religion of Islam. Calligraphy means "beautiful handwriting" and in Arabic it also means "the geometry of the spirit." This presentation and workshop will focus on the historical development and the origin of the different calligraphic styles, the role of calligraphy in Arab and Islamic cultures and the geometric proportioning of Arabic letters. The workshop will give participants the opportunity to do a hands-on project using calligraphy tools .Through a provided workbook, participants will practice the Riq'a style, one of the most common Arabic calligraphic styles.
Registration details:
Due to limited class size, prepayment is required to confirm your registration.
To register by phone: Call the Jerusalem Fund at (202) 338-1958 to process your credit card transaction.
To register by mail: Download the registration form by clicking on the icon below, and mail with check or credit card information to the address on the form.
About the Instructor:
Dr. Fayeq Oweis is an Arab American artist and professor of Arabic Language and Culture at Santa Clara University in Santa Clara, California. He has a Ph.D. in interdisciplinary studies with a focus on Arabic and Islamic arts and has published extensively and gave numerous presentations on Arabic Language and Culture, Islamic Arts and Arabic Calligraphy, and Arab American Artists.
As an artist, he designed the exterior entranceway murals and the calligraphy of the interior dome of the Arab American National Museum in Dearborn, Michigan. He also co-designed and directed one the first Arab/Islamic cultural murals in the United States located on the main street of downtown San Francisco and a Palestinian cultural mural honoring Edward Said proposed to be painted at San Francisco State University. He has exhibited his calligraphic compositions through out the United States, and was an artist-in-residence at the Art Institute of Chicago in February 2007.
He is a community activist and a founding director of ZAWAYA, a San Francisco-based non-profit organization dedicated to promoting Arabic culture through music, visual and performing arts. For more information, visit www.oweis.com.
Arabic Calligraphy Workshop at Santa Clara University
November 10, 2006
Click her for more details
Dr. Fayeq Oweis, Arabic calligrapher and digital artist, will be the Artist-in-Residence at The Art Institute of Chicago in February 2007. He will be introducing Arabic calligraphic design as part of The Silk Road and Beyond: Travel, Trade, and Transformation, from September 30, 2006 to April 1, 2007
House of Lebanon Celebration of the Arts
Just Published by Fayeq Oweis, Ph.D
Pocket Guide to Arabic Script
published by Hippocrene Books
A handy booklet that offers a complete, easy-to-use reference for the Arabic writing system. Ideal for students, it presents the basics for reading and writing Arabic script with a summary of word structure and grammar. Order it on-line from Hippocrene Books
Article Published in SFSU NEWS
Tarab ~ The Colors of Music
12 May 2006 - 23 June, 2006
Opening reception: Friday, 12 May, 6:30-8:30 p.m.
Khalil Bendib - Nabila Hilmi - Fayeq Oweis - Helen Zughaib - Afaf Zurayk
Tarab is one of the most important terms in the musical aesthetics of Arab culture. While difficult to translate precisely, tarab refers to a state of heightened emotionality in response to music, often translated as rapture, ecstasy or enchantment, as well as joy or sadness. Using line, color, motion and space, the five artists in this exhibit explore the intersections of music and emotion with the visual image. From the whimsical, color-saturated patterns of Zughaib’s precise compositions, to Oweis’s calligraphic variations on a theme, to Bendib’s nostalgic ceramic tile paintings of Moroccan and Algerian scenes, to the blocks of color and fluid lines of Zurayk’s reflective works, to the assertive and rhythmic lines of Hilmi’s drawings, the pieces in this show capture the transcendence of music and the mystery of its effects on the human soul.
http://www.thejerusalemfund.org/gallery/index.php
Work in progress: Artists from Arab American Culture
