Following a landmark year during which Jaou Tunis established itself as Tunis' first platform for art from the Maghreb and the Middle East, the Kamel Lazaar Foundation proudly announces the launch of the event's second edition from May 9th–May 11th. Over two consecutive days at the Bardo Museum, Jaou will capture the vibrancy of Tunis' cultural and artistic scene by holding a range of local and international exchanges. These discussions will address regional issues alongside global and international concerns.

"Jaou is an event which brings together artists, collectors, gallery owners, practitioners, specialists and theorists from the international and local art community. It has both a productive and festive dimension," states Mr. Kamel Lazaar, Founder of the Kamel Lazaar Foundation. "Our goal is to make JAOU an annual must-attend event for the MENA's cultural and artistic scene and to generate an international dialogue around culture."

Lina Lazaar, who is behind the creative concept of Jaou, further emphasizes that the event aims to grow even more and push the boundaries of regional art and culture. "This year, the second edition of Jaou Tunis has expanded to offer a more ambitious program, where the disparate, organically grown elements of the art scene in Tunisia can come together in an open, cohesive and transparent forum," she adds.

In this sense, on Saturday 10th, the online publishing initiative of the Kamel Lazaar Foundation, Ibraaz, will highlight the role that arts practitioners and education play in producing future institutions across the Maghreb and the Middle East. This panel will be hosted by Anthony Downey, Editor-In-Chief of Ibraaz, and will feature international speakers, such as Aaron Cezar (Director of Delfina Foundation, London); Dina Matar (Director of Centre for Media and Film Studies, SOAS, London); and Marie Muracciole (Director of Beirut Art Centre, Lebanon).

Further participants to the panel talks include: Redha Moali (Art Centre Dar Al Ma’Mûn, Marrakech, Morocco), Djamil Aïssani (Art Complex to Museum of Water Toudja, Bejaïa, Algeria), Akila Mouhoubi (Association Rivage, Marseille, France), Adel Essadani (Abattoirs de Casablanca, Casablanca, Morocco), Mohamed Ben Soltane (B’chira Art Centre, Sidi Thabet, Tunisia), Faten Mehouachi (Maison des Arts, Tunis, Tunisia), Mohamed Morabiti (Résidence d’artistes Al Makam, Marocco), Vincent Puig (Institut de Recherche et d’Innovation du Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France), Hassan Darsi (Atelier de la Source du Lion, Casablanca, Morocco), Syhem Belkhodja (Ness El Fan, Tunisia), Paul Vandenbroeck (Musée Royal des Beaux-Arts d’Anvers, Belgium), Elisabeth Cestor (Musée des Civilisations de l’Europe et de la Méditerranée, MuCEM, Marseille, France), as well as Cyrine Gannoun and Jihène Turki from Tunisia's Ministry of Culture, and art collector Adel Hamida. The panel talks will be hosted by key players of the regional and international art scene, such as Moez Safta (Higher Institute of Fine Arts, Tunis), Marie-Monique Steckel (French Institute, Alliance Française, New York), Nadia Zouari (artist and journalist) and Alia Hamza (journalist).

Alongside these panels, there will be a gallery tour on Sunday 11th visiting all the galleries in the northern suburbs of Tunis.

For further information, please visit www.kamellazaarfoundation.org.