Call for Artist Submissions: Shari’a Revoiced

The Call

“Shari’a Revoiced: Documenting American Muslims’ Experiences of Islamic Law” welcomes submissions from Muslim artists from Southern California practicing in any form for placement in a one-day exhibit in late October 2015. Artwork(s) submitted should in some way reflect the artist’s interpretation of “shari’a” and/or lived experiences of Islam.

Requirements

  • Artist must be Muslim American and from Southern California
  • Any art submitted should be located in Southern California (team can arrange for pickup or for artist to deliver work on site).
  • Artwork should require minimal installation for an indoor exhibit space
  • Artist will provide his/her own supplies
  • Artist will be recognized by the project for their contribution
  • Artists will agree to have artwork displayed at the exhibit, as well as on the website and project documentation
  • Artist will work with exhibit/event project manager to apply, submit and install artwork

About the Project

“Shari’a Revoiced: Documenting American Muslims’ Experiences of Islamic Law” is a research project led by Mark Massoud (Asst. Professor of Politics & Legal Studies, UC Santa Cruz) and Kathleen Moore (Chair, Religious Studies, UC Santa Barbara) to uncover new voices and understandings of Islamic law among Muslim communities in California. It is supported by the University of California Humanities Research Institute (UCHRI) and funded by the Henry Luce Foundation.

“Our goal is to illuminate through words and images how diverse Muslim activists, students, feminists, lawyers, social workers, and other cultural brokers produce local forms of Islamic knowledge.”

Findings will be disseminated through three public translations:

  • a widely accessible book, which will feature results of interviews with Muslim interlocutors who are creating diasporic formations of the meaning of shari’a and empowering marginalized communities while accommodating debate and diversity
  • a companion website and blog, which will showcase the book’s stories
  • an art exhibit in late October

Together, these three components of the project — book, website, and art exhibits — will aim to reveal the complex and everyday functions and lived experiences of Islamic law in California.