Manchester Salaam Festival 2023

Celebrating the Vibrant Intersection of Muslim Art and Culture in Manchester and Beyond

Our Vision

Exploring the Future of Islamic Art and Culture

Salaam Festival brings local, national and international artists of diverse backgrounds and art forms, to produce innovative and progressive new work in Manchester and beyond.

What Time Is It?

'What Time Is It ?' is a project working with local artists inspiring students to write a collection of poetry and prose based on science, astrology, space and identity. The project aims to bring an astrolabe out of collections to share and display history through new perspectives.

Artist

Elmi Ali and Nasima Begum

Inspired by the Astrolabe

Workshops and classes with schools in Manchester

Festival

Explore our Culture

We are redesigning an annual festival and new work with artists and communities. Salaam Festival promotes diverse cultures from around the world. We believe that cultural exchange is an essential part of creating a more connected and understanding society. Through our festival, we will provide a platform for artists and performers to showcase their work, while also providing audiences with the opportunity to experience new and exciting cultural expressions.

From music and dance to visual art and literature, our culture offers a diverse range of events that aim to educate and inspire our audiences through a rich tapestry of global cultures.

Watch this space in 2024.

Community

Art in Community

We are committed to engaging with and serving the creative needs of communities. We are working closely with community groups, businesses and art institutions to identify areas where we can collaborate and make a positive cultural impact.
Through our community engagement initiatives, we aim to build stronger relationships and create meaningful opportunities for individuals and groups to connect and participate in the cultural life of our city. Whether it's through organising conversations, workshops, or cultural activities, we strive to create a sense of belonging and real meaning.
Subjects include visual and performance art, art and health projects and diversity through artist representation.
We work with museums, art galleries, venues and arts organisations to host events, design ideas and collaborate on projects.

Schools

Salaam for Schools

We are working with artists, schools, colleges and universities to promote how Islamic art can be included and positively represented. We are dedicated to ensuring Islamic art and culture is presented accurately and sensitively in spaces of learning and education.
We have been programming culture days, boot camps and enrichment classes and provide practical recommendations to support curriculum learning goals, artist practice, parent engagement, and most importantly empower and inspire a young generation.
Subjects include: arabic calligraphy, geometric pattern, quranic illumination, ebru, drumming, taekwondo and nasheed singing.

For enquiries please email hello@salaamfestival.co.uk

Featured artist

Elmi Ali

is based in Manchester and writes poetry and short fiction for the stage. His work has been received in venues across the country from the Power House Library in Moss Side to The British Library in London. His writing is published in Scarf Magazine – of which he is an associate editor – Sable 15 and Critical Muslim 13 respectively. Elmi is a member of Inna Voice – a Manchester based spoken word collective – and is resident artist at Numbi – an artist’s collective in the East End of London. Elmi is also a member of Inscribe – Peepal Tree Press’s writer development programme. He is currently facilitating performance poetry and creative writing workshops with the Festival reimagining the Astrolabe.

A series of workshops have been designed to raise awareness of Islamic art and history by being hands on with art objects and museum collections.
Working with local artists across four schools; an anthology of poems and collection of artworks will reinterpret how we see the Astrolabe today.

Join the Salaam Festival Community and Help Us Grow!

We're always looking for passionate and dedicated individuals to join us in making Salaam Festival a success. Whether you're interested in volunteering, attending events, providing financial support or simply want to find out more about Muslim art and culture. Subscribe to our newsletter today and be part of our new community!

By clicking Sign Up you're confirming that you agree with our Terms and Conditions.
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Join the Salaam Festival Community and Help Us Grow!

We're always looking for passionate and dedicated individuals to join us in making Salaam Festival a success. Whether you're interested in volunteering, attending events, providing financial support or simply want to find out more about Muslim art and culture. Subscribe to our newsletter today and be part of our new community!

By clicking Sign Up you're confirming that you agree with our Terms and Conditions.
Thank you for subscribing to Salaam!
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Contact us

Get in Touch with Salaam

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