This art historian is on a quest to ensure the story of Arab art is not lost

The growing interest in Arab modern art has exposed significant challenges in primary research due to war, neglect, and language barriers. NYUAD's al Mawrid Arab Center for the Study of Art, established in 2021, is working to overcome these obstacles by digitizing artists' archives and translating Arabic texts into English. Salwa Mikdadi, the center's founder, emphasizes the need to improve access for scholars both in and outside the Arab world. Al Mawrid has already digitized over 45,000 records and aims to preserve and make accessible vital resources that might otherwise be lost.

"There is a big task ahead of us of redressing the gap in archival scholarship and heritage management," says Salwa Mikdadi, the Palestinian American art historian who established al Mawrid.

So far, al Mawrid has digitised more than 45,000 records and published numerous texts and books. Archival material has been found under artists' beds or infested with insects.

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