SHARJAH — Hoor Al-Qasimi, president of The Africa Institute, announced the inauguration of the newly rebuilt Africa Hall and the establishment of The Africa Institute on Sunday.

Initially opened in Sharjah in 1976, Africa Hall’s first cultural and political event was the Arab-African Symposium, held on Dec. 14-18, 1976.

The new Africa Hall, which has been rebuilt on the same site as the original building, will serve as the meeting place for conferences, symposia, lectures, film screenings, stage plays and performances related to the activities of The Africa Institute.

An additional building which will later permanently house The Africa Institute will be constructed adjacent to Africa Hall, designed by Sir David Adjaye.

The Africa Institute will serve as a globally-oriented, interdisciplinary academic research institute dedicated to the study, research, and documentation of Africa; its people and its cultures; its complex past, present, and future; and its manifold connections with the world.

Linkages between

Africa and Gulf

This center for African and African Diaspora studies will also examine the historical and contemporary linkages between Africa and the Arab Gulf region, demonstrating that geographic proximity and economic and cultural exchanges over millennia have long connected Africa and the Arab Gulf. Conceived as a research-based think-tank and a postgraduate studies institution, The Africa Institute will offer both Masters and Ph.D. programs.

“Sharjah has always been at the crossroads of various cultures, with great influence from Africa due to geographic proximity and economic exchange. The establishment of The Africa Institute, the first research and archival institution of its kind in the region, pays tribute to this rich history,” said Al-Qasimi.

“We are also pleased to re-launch Africa Hall which, since its founding in Sharjah in 1976, created a lasting legacy of cross-cultural connection and artistic expression.”

“The newly rebuilt Africa Hall is hoped to revive the golden era of the building in the 1970s and 1980s when it served as the hub of cultural events that included literary events, theatrical and musical performances, and poetry reading, in addition to conferences and symposia on ranges of topics,” said Dr. Salah Hassan, Goldwin Smith Professor and Director, Institute for Comparative Modernities, Cornell University, and academic advisor to The Africa Institute.

Opening program

The opening program for Africa Hall will run from Sept. 25 to 30 and will include performances by Zied Zouari, Youssou N’Dour and The Fathy Salama Orchestra (Sept. 25), Youssou N’Dour and Le Super Étoile de Dakar (Sept. 26), Oumou Sangaré (Sept. 27), Mulatu Astatke (Sept. 28), Lisa Simone, DJ Peter Adjaye (Sept. 29), and Somi (Sept. 30), as well as a screening of the film An Opera of the World (2017), directed by Manthia Diawara (Sept. 28).

The symposium 5-plus-1: Rethinking Abstraction, presented by Sharjah Art Foundation (SAF) and held in conjunction of SAF’s exhibition Frank Bowling: Mappa Mundi will also take place in Africa Hall on Sunday, Sept. 30.

The symposium is convened by Okwui Enwezor (curator, critic, and former director of Haus der Kunst), Hoor Al-Qasimi and Salah M. Hassan. — Al Arabiya English