For Immediate Release

An unprecedented gathering of renowned Egyptian and Western Artists come together to use Art as a bridge for intercultural and inter-religious dialogue

Cairo, Egypt, December 16, 2008: Under the banner "On A Caravan: East and West Journeying Together through the Arts,"  twenty highly respected and recognized Egyptian and Western artists have formed an artistic initiative with the goal of building bridges of understanding and respect between East and West, Muslims and Christians, that will result in a selling exhibition January 29-February 5, 2009.

St. John’s Church, founded in 1931 as the last church designed by the eminent architect Sir Herbert Baker, who built churches from Cape Town to Cairo, serves as a unique catalyst for Christian/Muslim relations due to the local respect it has developed over the last 76 years with the Islamic authorities, and more recently, due to the post 9/11 Dialogue Agreement between the Anglican Communion and Al Azhar, the intellectual and spiritual heart of Sunni Islam.

“In this increasing chasm of misunderstanding and discord between the Middle East and West,” says Rev. Paul-Gordon Chandler, author and the American priest of St. John’s, and curator of On A Caravan, “our day calls for a whole new kind of movement: one that builds on what the two hold in common. And art, a wellspring of the spiritual journey, serves to build this much-needed bridge. Our challenge is to see art as Leo Tolstoy, the Russian novelist, saw it, when he said, ‘The task of art in enormous… Art should cause violence to be set aside. And it is only art that can accomplish this.’ ”

The aim of the symposium is to explore the relationships between the East and West through the media of painting / printmaking and fine arts. The symposium, which will result in a highly publicized exhibition, was launched in the grounds of one of Maadi’s (southern suburb of Cairo) elegant historic villas. Participants include a diverse range of artists ranging from one of Egypt’s leading contemporary artists, Mohammed Abla, to artist Dr. Reda Adbel Rahman from the Egyptian Ministry of Culture, to local artists who are being given the opportunity to join together with these more established artists.

Internationally renowned Egyptian artist Mohammed Abla, who is both participating in On A Caravan and facilitating an interactive art day for all the participating artists, at the launch said, “I am living this bridge. As a Muslim, I married a Christian, and I profoundly believe in this idea of using art to build an alliance of understanding and friendship.”

On the last weekend of January 2009 all 40 works of art will be exhibited within St. John’s Church for a selling exhibition from January 29th-February 5. Over a thousand are expected to attend this unique event. The program is generating significant interest from the international media.

“ We hope that through this initiative,” said Roland Prime, a participating British artist who is also helping to facilitate the symposium/exhibition, “we can learn and pass on these skills to others, so that all can live without division and respect and love the ‘other.’”

The participating artists include:

On A Caravan: East and West Journeying Together through the Arts

Curated by Rev. Paul-Gordon Chandler
Facilitators: Mohammed Abla and Roland Prime
www.oncaravan.org
www.maadichurchstjohn.org/caravan.htm

For more information or to request an interview, please contact Rev. Paul-Gordon Chandler at email: info@maadichurchstjohn.org . Photographs available upon request.