Areej Ashhab is a Palestinian artist, architect and researcher engaging in community land practices and material ecologies. She’s a co-founder of Al-Block collective, documenting lost narratives of the Palestinian landscape through collective walking, and Al-Wah’at, a translocal collective countering anthropocentric and colonial narratives around arid lands and futures. Ashhab has contributed to projects Between Lime and Clay (2023-2024), The Absent Map (Riwaq Centre, 2021-2022), Souq Stories (Palestine, 2021), and Jerusalem Show IX (Al-Ma’mal Foundation, 2018). She has also taught at the Royal College of Art (London, UK) and the Arab American University (Ramallah, Palestine).

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Nabila Horakhsh is a contemporary artist, curator, and co-founder of Berang Arts from Kabul, Afghanistan. Her practice encompasses painting, drawing, and photography. After the fall of the government in Afghanistan, Nabila moved to Hamburg, Germany in February 2022 to continue her art activities in exile. In 2022, as an artist in residence at the University of Fine Arts Hamburg (HFBK), she created artworks that show the devastating effects of the political crisis on the people of Afghanistan, especially women deprived of their human rights. Nabila sees her artistic work as a medium of resistance. Through her art, she hopes to unite the people of the world to promote peace and unity and to support the people of Afghanistan against oppression, political machinations, religious extremism, and gender discrimination. Nabila’s work has been showcased in group art exhibitions in Afghanistan, Germany, the UK, Canada, India, Italy, Belgium, and the UAE. She studied Persian Literature and Language at Kabul University.

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Photo by Tim – HFBK

Zumrad Mirzalieva is a photographer and filmmaker from Uzbekistan, whose focus spans across agency, migration and identity. Her debut short film, “Autonomy” was screened at documenta fifteen and the GoEast film festival symposium in Wiesbaden. Zumrad’s documentary photography projects have been featured in publications like Its Nice That, Azeema, and Ruyo. She is a member of the Davra research group, initiated by artist and filmmaker Saodat Ismailova. Zumrad holds a master’s degree in Social Innovation from the London School of Economics and Political Science, where she explored the transformative role of art in driving positive social change.

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Sartaroshxona series by Zumrad Mirzalieva

Altynai Osmo is a multimedia artist and activist. Her artistic practice is rooted in Central Asian nomadic heritage and is politically driven by social awareness and women empowerment. Altynai collaborates with diverse craftsmen, artists, and initiatives and exhibits her artwork internationally. Her artistic intentions are to bridge traditional and contemporary societies, challenge societal norms and foster positive change. Altynai is actively involved in local and international solidarity movements, advocating social justice causes. Defying the difficult socio-political situation and growing gender-based violence in the region, she currently focuses on creating images of free spirited women of Central Asia.

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Mátyás Tóth is a Budapest-based artist whose practice spans puppet experiments, theatrical performances and contemporary exhibitions worldwide, garnering major theatrical awards. His artistic vision frequently extends to tackling profound topics and breaking genre boundaries. Recent highlights include collaborating with the BBC, performing on Hungary’s largest stage as the protagonist, and creating an experimental puppet-movement exhibition about grief in Japan. Committed to social impact, Mátyás led participatory theater and played puppet performances for underprivileged youth and conducted workshops on social responsibility. He has a Master’s degree in Acting & Puppetry.

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