Eternal Crafts: Communal Weaving

Adding to the Year of Handcrafts, "Eternal Crafts: Communal Weaving" celebrates weaving as both a material and social practice. Conceived through a dialogue between the curator Meshal Al-Obaidallah and the artist Abeer Seikaly, this exhibition presents the commissioned project “Tirhal: To Al-Ahsa.” By expanding their dialogue to include fellow creative practitioners, the act of weaving unfolds as more than craft, to become a shared ritual.

"Tirhal: To Al-Ahsa" is a travelogue that grew from the artist’s journey to al-Hasa and four-day experience at the Julayjilah palm farm—hosted by the farm owner Jasim Al-Mousa. Rooted in al-Hasa, the project considers the palm tree itself as a central figure—evergreen, maternal and enduring. Its fronds are used in the weaving craft of Khoos. Through collective fieldwork on the farm, "Tirhal: To Al-Ahsa" unfolds as a woven structure, a photographic series and a short film.

Woven in collaboration with the Khoos weavers, Masouma Al Hamdan and Fatima Al-Mousa, the suspended trunk-like spiral structure mimics the natural geometries of the palm tree, and it unravels into a Hasir—a traditional floor mat. The accompanying photo series captures candid moments from the trip that unfold chronologically like a daily diary. The short film, directed by Abeer Seikaly and executive produced by Meshal Al-Obaidallah, layers the artist’s introspective narration with scenes of farm life, shared meals and experimental attempts.

As one steps into the exhibition, they enter a continuum between ancestral handcraft and contemporary vision. "Tirhal: To Al-Ahsa" reflects this continuity; the artist—herself Jordanian-Palestinian—meditates on how indigenous knowledge travels across hands, lands and generations in the Arab homeland.