Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center

Monday, April 21, 2008
12:30 pm -1:30 pm
Georgetown University Center for Contemporary Arab Studies
Intercultural Center CCAS Boardroom (ICC 241)
37th & O Streets, NW
Washington, DC 20057-1020

Wednesday, April 23, 2008
1:00 pm -2:00 pm
Rome Room 200
The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, The Johns Hopkins University
1619 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20036

“With the steady increase in crude oil production and exports and the surge in oil prices in the mid-and late 1970s, Oman embarked upon an economic development path that transformed it into a prosperous country. Prudent utilization of oil revenues to develop social and physical infrastructure—with substantial investments undertaken in health, transportation, electric power, water supply, and communications—contributed to a rapid transformation of Oman’s economic foundation and structure. Today Oman boasts an impressive physical infrastructure, much improved socioeconomic conditions, and a high standard of living.” IMF (1999)

More recently, the Commission on Growth and Development (2008) stated that Oman is one of only twelve countries in the world that has achieved sustained high economic growth averaging seven percent annually for two and half decades or more. Such high growth leads to the doubling of per capita income and a drastic reduction in poverty. The Commission attributes such remarkable growth in these countries to a number of factors, among which is effective governance and leadership as an important contributor to consistent long-term economic growth.

The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) issues an annual Human Development Report (HDR), which ranks 177 countries based on a composite measure of three dimensions of human development indicators: health, education, and per capita income. This ranking, first issued in 1990, goes beyond income to a broader definition of well-being. According to the 2007-2008 HDR, Oman was ranked 58th, which is among the “high human development” countries category. This ranking places Oman fifth among all Arab countries. In terms of economic freedom performance, Oman was ranked 18th among 141 countries and second among Arab countries according to the Economic Freedom of the World: 2007 Annual Report, published by the Fraser Institute in Canada. Likewise, the Heritage Foundation and Dow Jones & Company 2007 Index of Economic Freedom Report ranked Oman third among Arab countries. Finally, according to the Global Competitiveness Report 2007-2008 of the World Economic Forum (WEF), Oman was ranked 42nd among 131 countries and sixth among Arab countries. In terms of the Business Competitiveness Index 2007-2008 of the WEF, Oman was ranked 38th among 127 countries and third among Arab countries.

Since 1970, Oman has achieved a remarkable transformation in human and physical infrastructure, a necessary condition for improving the welfare of its citizens. However, this alone is not sufficient for maintaining sustainable economic prosperity in the future. How to manage the challenges of success and address some fundamental long-term issues in its current economic structure—such as diversifying the economy away from the hydrocarbon sector, generating jobs for its young and growing population, and improving the quality of education—will determine the future prospects of the country beyond the oil era.

All Screenings will Feature a Special Q&A Session with Director Khalid al-Zadjali

Arabian Sights Film Festival
November 3, 6:30 pm
November 4, 8:30 pm
AMC Loews Dupont Circle 5
1350 19th St., NW
Washington, DC 20036

The University of Arizona
Center for Middle Eastern Studies
November 7, 7:00 pm
Integrated Learning Center, Room 150
Tuscon, AZ

Dickinson College
November 10, 7:00 pm
Rubendall Recital Hall, the Weiss Center
West High Street
Carlise, PA 17013

Picturesque vistas and a tight-knit community, little seen by the rest of the world, construct the framework for the first feature film from Oman. The serene inhabitants of a small coastal town, steeped in tradition, have always made their living from fishing and boat-building. When a young fisherman suddenly and mysteriously goes missing, local superstition, compouded with the threat of urbanization, challenge not only the town's peaceful existence but also its livelihood. Friends and family of the missing boy wait patiently as the rest of the locals confront their futures. The movie stars Omani actors Saleh Za'al and Zuha Qader.

Omani director and writer Dr. Khalid Abdul Rahim Al-Zadjali is Assistant Director General for Production of Oman TV. He is also President of the Oman Film Society and President of the Muscat Film Festival.

Arabic Calligraphy Workshops

Featuring Omani Calligrapher Sami Zain al-Ghawi

For centuries calligraphy has been a main method of artistic expression in the Arab world, and today remains one of the most revered forms of Islamic Art. SQCC invites you to explore the methods and techniques of writing in Arabic and use the traditional instruments of Arabic calligraphers to create your own works of art.

A member of the Omani Society for Fine Arts, renowned calligrapher Sami Zain al-Ghawi has received numerous awards for his work, including First Prize in Classic Arabic Calligraphy in the 2004 Fine Arts Exhibition in Muscat, Oman. He was also a Judge Committee member in the Eighth Periodical Exhibition of the Fine Arts and Arabic Calligraphy for the Artists of the Gulf Cooperation Council.

Georgetown University
November 14, 12:30 pm
Center for Contemporary Arab Studies
Intercultural Center, CCAS Boardroom (ICC 241)
37th & O Streets, NW
Washington, DC 20057

SQCC, Georgetown's Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies, and the Center for Contemporary Arab studies will co-host this lecture on Arabic calligraphy with Sami al-Ghawi.

Sackler Gallery ImaginAsia Classroom
November 17, 2:00 pm
November 18, 2:00 pm
1050 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20013

SQCC will co-sponsor two workshops with the Smithsonian Freer and Sackler Galleries Education department, to be held on the second floor of the Sackler Gallery in the Imaginasia classroom. Expert calligraphers Sami al-Ghawi and Aisha Holland will facilitate.

Middle East Institute
November 19, 6:00 pm
1761 N Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036

The traditional craft industries of Oman are among the most important cultural survivals in the Arabian Peninsula. Neil Richardson and Marcia Dorr, co-authors of the visually captivating two-volume work The Craft Heritage of Oman, have spent more than ten years researching and documenting the craft traditions of Oman, traveling widely throughout the country and witnessing firsthand the dramatic impact on traditional lifestyles as Oman embraces progress and modernity. The origins of Oman’s craft traditions can be traced back to man’s earliest activities in the Gulf and Mesopotamia, and their subsequent development directly reflects both Oman’s distinguished history as a trading nation and the innate resourcefulness of its people. These rich craft traditions connect to India, Africa and Persia as well as to Oman’s Arab and Middle East heritage. Through initiatives such as the Omani Craft Heritage Documentation Project, Oman is committed to recording and preserving what is unique to their cultural heritage. Richardson and Dorr’s illustrated lecture will feature their research methodology including interviewing hundreds of individual craftspeople and documenting and photographing raw materials, tools and equipment, production techniques, and the crafts products themselves. They will note, in particular, those crafts of the 16th and 17th centuries that reflect the ongoing “Encompassing the Globe” exhibition. In addition, they will discuss the relationship between craft usage and lifestyle, the changing role of craft industries in a rapidly modernizing society, and the importance of perpetuating heritage and culture for the benefit of future generations.

In 1840, the Omani envoy Ahmad bin Na’aman sailed into New York harbor on the Omani vessel, the Sultanah, bearing a panoply of exquisite gifts for President Martin van Buren from the Sultan of Muscat, Sayyed Sa’id bin Sultan. The gifts followed the signing of the 1833 Treaty of Amity and Commerce between the United States and Oman. Arabian horses, pearls, silk shawls, Omani dates, a gold-mounted sword, skins, ivory, and beautiful carpets caused great excitement among the New Yorkers who viewed them. They also sparked a protracted debate in Congress about whether they could be accepted by the President. The two Arabian stud horses were sold at auction, and the gifts that could be preserved were dispersed among several Smithsonian museums, where they still reside today. The Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center is working with the Smithsonian Freer and Sackler Galleries on research for an article in the fall issue of their Asiatica magazine, with plans to mount a small exhibition in Washington and eventually in Oman. The article will appear on the SQCC website this fall.

Encompassing the Globe:
Portugal and the World in the 16th and 17th Centuries

June 24 – September 16
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery & the National Museum of African Art
(Smithsonian Metro stop-Mall exit, blue/orange line)

During the 16th century, Portuguese sailors braved international waters to create a global trading network that extended from Europe to Brazil, Africa, the Arabian Gulf, the Indian Ocean, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, China and Japan. This unique Smithsonian exhibition, the largest ever mounted by the Freer and Sackler Galleries, will explore the artistic achievements that flourished when these sailors exposed new creative techniques and imagery to the world as they transported goods from port to port. It will bring together hundreds of extraordinary objects reflecting the unprecedented cross-cultural dialogue that followed the establishment of Portugal’s world trading network.

The Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center will be the sole sponsor of the segment “The Indian Ocean from Muscat to the Spice Islands,” with Muscat playing a prominent role in the cross-cultural dialogue in the Indian Ocean region. According to Omani Ambassador to the United States, H.E. Hunaina Sultan Al-Mughairy, “The role of Oman and Muscat during the 16th and 17th centuries was one of bringing peoples together through trade, commerce and cultural exchange. In that spirit, the Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center works to expand mutual understanding and appreciation in order to enrich and inform both our societies.”For more information, please read the SQCC Press Release and go to the Smithsonian Freer and Sackler website.

Every summer, the Smithsonian Freer and Sackler Galleries offer family programs and weekend open houses on a theme relating to an ongoing exhibition. This summer, in concert with “Encompassing the Globe,” the theme will be “The Lure of Spices.” Eleven weekend open houses and two family programs will invite children ages 6-14 and their parents to weigh, grind, taste, smell, and sprinkle spices on hot coals. Every child will be able to take home some samples of the spices.

The Saturday open houses will all take place from 1-3 pm.
Dates: June 30, July 7, 14, 21, 28, August 4, 12, 18, 25 and September 8, 15.

The two family programs will begin at 2 pm with an introduction and activity books to explore the exhibition. The programs will be on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Dates: Thursday, July 19 and Wednesday July 25.

The Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center will serve as a resource on the spices of Oman and will be present at several of the Open Houses. For more information, check out the ImaginAsia website.

August 23
4:30-8:00 pm
Sackler Gallery, Hirshorn Museum, National Gallery of African Art

The Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center will co-host this year’s Smithsonian Annual Teachers’ Night at the Sackler Gallery. We will sponsor well-known calligrapher, Aishah Holland [link to bio on past events] to conduct two interactive calligraphy workshops for teachers during the course of the evening. SQCC also plans to provide a “How-To” CD-ROM and sample calligraphy exercises for students that teachers can take back to their classrooms. For more details, please visit the Freer and Sackler Galleries’ Education website.

Featuring
Ibrahim Al-Busaidi
Scholar of Omani-Portuguese Relations, University of Lisbon, Portugal

During the age of the explorers in the 16th and 17th centuries, Portuguese sailors braved international waters to construct a global trading network that extended from Europe to Brazil, Africa, and the Indian Ocean. Oman’s close trade relations with Asia and Africa provided the Portuguese with a growing link to East Asian civilizations. Oman played a pivotal role, both economically and culturally, as Omani pioneers contributed greatly to the propagation of Islam, the Arabic language, and seafaring sciences on the Indian Ocean. As the center of trade routes, Muscat helped expose the world to new creative seafaring techniques as Omani traders helped transport goods from port to port. This period of time had a seminal impact on Oman’s relations with the other great world civilizations, and changed the course of history as it was the launch of the age of globalization.

Donna Pepperdine, MH
April 18
Middle East Institute Boardman, Washington, DC

Donna Pepperdine, co-author with Robert W. Lebling of “Natural Remedies of Arabia,” presented a slide-illustrated lecture for an audience of 40 on natural remedies still practiced in the Arabian Peninsula. Based on a questionnaire distributed in the Arabian Peninsula in 2002, Pepperdine and Lebling have compiled a comprehensive record of oils, herbs, spices, bark, twigs, dried flowers, rocks and salt intended for culinary, cosmetic or medicinal purposes. These natural substances serve as remedies for conditions from hair loss to childbirth, from coughs and colds to general fatigue.

Copies of the book Natural Remedies of Arabia were sold, and Ms. Pepperdine was available for a signing.

Donna Pepperdine is a Master Herbalist who lived in the Middle East for ten years and has focused her research on natural health solutions within the context of Saudi family tradition.

SQCC was invited by the National Council on US-Arab Relations to help judge student delegations representing Arab nations in committee sessions as part of the Council’s annual simulated summit of the League of Arab States. SQCC presented itself as a resource on Oman and the Arabian Peninsula for the student delegates preparing for the simulation. We are honored to be a part of this prestigious collaboration with university students and Washington organizations as a contribution to promote cross-cultural understanding.

For more information about more Model Arab League conferences, pleas visit the NCUSAR website: www.ncusar.org.

National Council of Social Studies Conference
December 1-2, 2006
Washington DC Convention Center

Arabic Calligraphy Workshop
November 29, 2006
College of William & Mary DC Office, Carnegie Endowment, Washington, DC

June 13-August 2, 2006
Johns Hopkins – SAIS Rome Auditorium, Washington, DC

April - May
Embassy of the Sultanate of Oman, Washington, DC

On April 27, a group of 45 students and teachers from Hillbrook School in Los Gatos, CA visited the Embassy. On May 17, 53 students and teachers from Christ Lutheran School in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA arrived. On both occasions, a diplomat from the Embassy briefed the group on the history of US-Oman relations. Teachers were provided an educational packet and students received customized bookmarks and small incense burners. Group photos were taken and sent to teachers shortly after the visit. Responses from teachers and students were extremely positive.