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Dear all,

It would be greatly appreciated if you could please share the info below about our project and its event with interested parties:

Una moschea per Roma? Rethinking the Mosque, Opening the City

Una moschea per Roma? consists of three series of public meetings to be undertaken in Rome during May 2017, ending one week before the start of Ramadan 2017. The meetings are open to everyone—Muslims and non-Muslims, institutional actors, various civic organisations as well as private citizens. Using creative approaches as stimuli, the project forms a platform for conflict management, applying social sciences with participatory arts to improve cross-cultural dialogue, co-design pathways for religious pluralism and impact policy-making around the potential building of Islamic spaces in Rome.

Una moschea per Roma? is a collaborative project between researchers from University of Bristol, University of Bath SPA, Gran Sasso Science Institute, and Centre for the Studies and Documentation of Religions and Political Institutions in Post-Secular Societies at Tor Vergata University (CSPS). The project is part of NEW2US framework (New Emerging Worship Patterns to Open Up Urban Space), under the supervision of the CSPS and partnered by Tavolo Interreligioso di Roma.

The project is centred on three participatory workshops:

1. Core workshops on architecture and urban planning.
2. A workshop on traditional Islamic geometric patterns.
3. A workshop on poetic improvisation.

These will concluded with a final plenary session to be held at Tavolo Interreligioso di Roma (Via delle Carine 4) on the 29th May 2017, 16:30-18:30.

Architecture and city planning —6 and 13 May 10:30-12:30; 20 May 15:00-17:00 Participants engaged with audio-video materials about Islamic traditional architecture and on mosques built across Europe in the last 20 years. Such exhibition grounds a number of participatory activities for the participants to actively re-think urban planning practices for building mosques. The final outcome will consist in a number of guidelines to be addressed to City Council and media. Meetings are open to everyone. They will be set at Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna in Rome (Viale delle Belle Arti 131, 00197). The workshop will be led by Giuseppe Carta (University of Bristol), coordinated by Francesco Chiodelli, Gran Sasso Science Institute) and supported by trained facilitators. The exhibition will be curated and finalised by artists Shaheen Kasmani and Panayiota Demetriou .

Islamic geometric patterns and cosmologies —9 and 10 May 15:00-18:00 Participants will learn about the cultural, historical and stylistic contexts within which Islamic art developed. Classes will consist of practical sessions whereby participants can discover how to construct traditional Islamic geometric patterns, create their own Islamic-inspired floral designs, and learn painting and gilding techniques from the Islamic world. Meetings are open to everyone. The course has a maximum of 20 participants. It is requested a participation fee of €50 and €30 concessions. The meetings will be take place at Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna in Rome (Viale delle Belle Arti 131, 00197). The workshop will be held by artist Ayesha Gamiet and Shaheen Kasmani.

Poetic improvisation, displacement and spirituality—13 May 19:00-20:00 This workshop aims to bring its participants, only Muslims, to creatively represent their affective relationship with both the city of Rome and their Islamic faith. By exploring harmony and rhythm in languages as echoes of cosmologies and faith revelation, participants will address through poetic improvisation the complex unfolding of displaced identities and overarching metaphysics, of transcendence and immanence. The activities will be set on a number of locations. A final public performance will be conceived as a walking exploration throughout the urban neighbourhood of Rome, Torpignattara. The workshop will be held by spoken word artist and practitioner Shagufta K Iqbal.

For further information and bookings, please contact: [log in to unmask]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Immaginemoschea/

Twitter: @Immaginemoschea

Thank you,

Giuseppe Carta (University of Bristol)

Dr Panayiota Demetriou (Bath Spa University)