'Between the spring of 2012 and the summer of 2013, curators Sam Bardaouil and Till Fellrath set out to document a number of in-depth conversations with a number of artists. These were friends of theirs who were increasingly frustrated with the expectations concerning the type of political engagement expected from them in response to the upheavals that have since been labeled the “Arab Spring.” Conducted in Cairo, Beirut, Dubai, Paris, London and New York, the ten interviews in this book are reflective of an ongoing conversation that spans several years. They include five women and six men, all established mid-career artists originating from Morocco, Algeria, Egypt, Palestine, Lebanon, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

These conversations serve as primary documents for the decades to come, shedding light on previously unknown personal aspects of their lives that underscore many of their formal and topical choices. Unhampered by thematic narratives and art-historical classifications, or by the overtly politicized readings of history and nations, these conversations offer the reader a candid encounter with these artists within the context of their individual and unique contexts.' - from back cover

Includes colour plates of artworks. With biography of the authors.