University in Exile for Afghan Artists
In collaboration with the Artistic Freedom Initiative, the Consortium is committed to bringing 10 endangered Afghan artists on 1-year fellowships to the programs and divisions in the arts at The New School. When we succeed, the Consortium will have effectively created a second University in Exile at The New School, the first of which was founded by The New School’s first President, Alvin Johnson in 1933. Artists who have accepted a fellowship offer are profiled below.
Mujib Mehrdad, Poet, Writer, Journalist
Mujib Mehrdad is a writer of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction whose work spans the literary, academic, television, and journalistic fields. He has published many collections of essays and poetry, including “Gladiators Are Still Dying,” which won the 2007 Afghan Civil Society’s literature contest, and “Dolphin’s Alley,” which won the Ahmad Shamlou Poetry Award in 2021. Until 2022, Mehrdad served as Editor-in-Chief of the Afghan newspaper, Hasht-e Subh.
He is being hosted by the Creative Writing Program in the Schools of Public Engagement at The New School.
Kabir Mokamel, Visual Artist
Kabir Mokamel is a visual artist and activist who has enjoyed international success in his career as a painter, graphic designer, creative director, and graffiti artist. In addition to his work as co-founder and creative director of the art activism organization ArtLords, Mokamel continues his independent art practice, which focuses on the experience of war, displacement, and the ensuing issues of diaspora, conflict, and trauma. Mokamel’s work with ArtLords has been featured in The Art Newspaper, NBC News, KUOW Seattle, Al Jazeera, The Los Angeles Times, and more.
He is being hosted by The School of Art, Media, and Technology at The New School.
Sahraa Karimi, Filmmaker
Sahraa Karimi is an acclaimed filmmaker who has enjoyed international success in her career as a groundbreaking screenwriter, director, and professor. She is the first woman ever to head Afghan Films as its Director-General. Karimi’s filmography includes works such as Afghan Women behind the Wheel (2009), and Hava, Maryam, Ayesha (2019).
She is being hosted by the School of Media Studies at The New School.
Ahmad Fanoos, Musician
Renowned Afghan musician, Ahmad Fanoos, will be the first artist in residence in the fall of 2022. Fanoos is an acclaimed vocalist, harmonium and tabla player, teacher, and composer. He is known for singing in the Ghazal style (a form of poetic recitation which originated in 6th-century Arabic verse and is popular in India and Pakistan). His performances are available to view here.
He is being hosted by the Mannes School of Music in the College of Performing Arts at The New School.
Donations
Please donate to the New University in Exile Consortium to contribute to a fellowship for an Afghan artist. Donations can be made here.
The University in Exile for Afghan Artists is made possible by generous support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art, the Helen Frankenthaler Foundation, and from individual donors.