About Nahnou-Together

The project started in August 2005 in Damascus with a five-day immersion programme for the adult participants. Following this, weekly workshops take place out of school hours at the Damascus and London schools, led in London by artist Henna Nadeem and teacher Sandra Archer, and in Damascus by artist and educator Rim Al Khatib and a team of artist educators. In addition to working with students from their own countries, in the course of the six-month project, the artists will travel to London or Damascus to work with each other’s students.

Participating students are aged 14-16. In London they are studying for Art GCSE and the work they produce will contribute to their coursework. In Damascus students stop studying art in school by the age of 14, and the Adham Ismail Centre offers them the opportunity to develop their art practice.

This website will contribute to a display to be shown at Tate Britain in 2006. It has been designed by Alexander Kohlhofer of Soda a London-based creative technology company. The Adham Ismail Centre and British Council Syria are also making a display to be shown in Damascus in 2006.

For Adham Ismail Centre the project complements its efforts to develop the skills of its students by exposing them to other cultures and international artistic trends. It also opens new horizons for the Centre in linking arts training with arts education using local art works and benefiting from the experience of Tate Britain in this area.

Quintin Kynaston Art Department aims to reflect the diverse local community, rich in culture, language and traditions from around the world. Art and design as a discipline has been a means of expression and communication globally and throughout history, and through innovative and varied teaching styles, the department aims to develop, nurture and broaden students’ skills and heighten students’ interests in the visual arts.

For British Council this project is part of the Connecting Futures initiative which aims to build mutual understanding, learning and respect between young people with different cultural backgrounds in the UK and other countries.

For Tate Britain this project is part of a wider programme exploring Tate’s Collection as it links to trans-national cultures. Tate Britain has an expanding Youth Programme which includes many out-of-school courses, projects and events. A comparable programme is Visual Dialogues working with young people, artists, the Tate Collection and partner galleries in Britain.

British Council – Creating opportunity worldwide

The British Council is the United Kingdom’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations.

Its purpose is to build mutually beneficial relationships between people in the UK and other countries and to increase appreciation of the UK’s creative ideas and achievements.

This work is driven by a strong belief in internationalism, a commitment to professionalism and an enthusiasm for creativity. These qualities, coupled with our integrity and our conviction that cultural relations can help individuals and the world community to thrive, make the British Council a good partner and a special place to work.

Connecting Futures is a global British Council programme which aims to build mutual understanding, learning and respect between young people with different cultural backgrounds in the UK and other countries.

Projects bring together young people between the ages of 15 and 25. Space is created for them to share their experiences and ideas, where they learn more about their mutual interests and concerns, with the aims of broadening their international view and developing a sense of global citizenship. Currently 42 countries are participating in the programme with more than 60 projects under implementation.

There is a growing recognition of the need for societies at many levels to engage with and learn from each other. Bringing people together has never been more important and as necessary as today.

Connecting Futures is an equal partnership between the UK and overseas.

Tate Britain

Tate Britain is the world centre for the understanding and enjoyment of British art and works actively to promote interest in British art internationally. The displays at Tate Britain call on the greatest collection of British art in the world to present an unrivalled picture of the development of art in Britain from the time of the Tudor monarchs in the sixteenth century, to the present day.

Located in London, it is one of the family of four Tate galleries which display selections from the Tate Collection. The other three galleries are Tate Modern, also in London, Tate Liverpool, in the north-west, and Tate St Ives, in Cornwall, in the south-west. The entire Tate Collection is available online.

Quintin Kynaston School

Quintin Kynaston School is a culturally diverse secondary school in North London which aims to develop the best in every student through the excellent teaching of a broad and challenging curriculum in a supportive and technologically advanced environment.

For the students, this means enjoying an excellent education in all subjects so they enter adult life as well-rounded, educated, individuals.

For the staff, this means using technological education to drive up standards and enrich learning, as well as expanding their own skills and knowledge to be ’lead learners’ in the community.

Quintin Kynaston reaches out to its local community by delivering information, support, education, facilities and more to parents, guardians and neighbours.

”The wealth of cultures and faiths in the school is valued, respected and appreciated by all teachers and students. The racial harmony and very good relationships give the school a special character and contribute to its very good ethos.” Ofsted report 2004

Adham Ismail Centre for Fine Arts

Adham Ismael Centre for Fine Arts was established in Damascus in late 1959 as part of the Ministry of Culture, and started its first round of courses in early 1960. On April 10th 1968, the centre was named after the late Syrian Artist Adham Ismael. Since the beginning, major Syrian artists and art educators worked in the centre and participated with their Syrian and international peers in joint workshops.

Whether in children, teenagers, young adults or adults; the centre aims at developing the artistic talents and providing these talented people with the space and the artistic taste to enable them to work on and produce artistic works. Age and educational background do not matter for Adham Ismael Centre, what matters is the talent.

The sessions are free of charge, and the subjects offered vary between painting, oil painting and sculpture. Students are also offered sessions on aesthetics, the human form, engraving, history of art and artistic criticism.

Adham Ismael Centre runs two six-month courses a year: the winter course and the summer course. Applications for the winter course are made in December, while the summer ones are made in June. Students graduate from the centre after completing four courses and submitting a successful graduation project. On graduation, students are given an accredited certificate.

The Centre holds several exhibitions for students’ and graduates’ works every year. It also participated and participates in several national and international exhibitions.