Manal al-Nashash: Art in Jordan is in rapid development

Artist Manal al-Nashash has launched the initiative Fonun (Arts) to teach drawing on pottery to Jordanians.? The initiative includes 20 training workshops to teach arts which can accommodate 320 students and another ??120 with special needs. ? According to Nashash, the workshops she offers, including learning mosaics, drawing on sand boards, and ?drawing on glass, are suitable for everyone regardless of their background. Nashash explained in an interview with Arab Today that “art in Jordan in is rapid development in different fields but the artists are currently going through a institutional crisis rather than an artistic one.”? “When the art turns into a project that needs funding, it comes at the expense of ?the art and the artist, meaning that the quality decreases,”? she said Nashash pointed out that women have proven themselves in the field of art whether it is Jordanian or ?Arab. Asked about the lack of direction women may have in ceramic arts, Nashash said “it is one of the most ?beautiful kinds of art, but with details that not every woman can handle since the difficulty of making pottery and ceramics take a long time and the use of thermal ovens could possibly cause ?health issues.” “The most significant problems facing an artist is the reality of art under the ?current circumstances  in Arab countries and the inability to be dedicated only to art because of the difficult living ?conditions,”? she added. Nashash hold diplomas in porcelain making, ceramics and calligraphy. She has held 14 ?personal exhibitions and participated at the International Sculpture Symposium and the Third International in China where she was the only Arab participant among 112 from all over the ?world.