A Writing Practice with Sarah Afaneh
9 July 2026 - 17 September 2026
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
A Writing Practice is built around care: helping participants develop a steady writing practice alongside a genuine sense of community. Two questions run through it: how can writing become play, and how can it serve as an anchor for the curiosities and ideas we want to explore? Each session makes space for putting pen to paper, sharing work, and giving and receiving feedback with openness and trust.
Open to ages 18+
No prior experience required
Language: English and Arabic
It is encouraged to attend teaching sessions to get the full experience, but participants are also welcome to join the workshops as standalone sessions.
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Maktaba: Portraits from African Literature with Threadify
13 August 2026
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
The Speculative Circle
Maktaba: A Speculative Thought Circle is a monthly gathering dedicated to collective reading, viewing, and discussion across disciplines. Rooted in the Arabic word for "library," Maktaba takes the form of an open and horizontal learning environment where participants gather around a roundtable to reflect on texts and artistic practices, from exhibitions, books, film, and image to performance and sound, considering the ways they speak to one another and what we might speculate from them.
Open to ages 18 and above.
No prior experience is required
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Noor’s Heroes: Umm Kulthum & Sound Poetry Orchestra with Myrna Ayad & Andrew Riad
30 August 2026
11:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Children's Programming
Immerse yourself in the story of a beloved cultural figure from the Arab world through storytelling, play, and hands-on making in this family-friendly Noor's Heroes™ storytime and studio session.
Open to ages 6 and above.
No prior experience is required
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Maktaba: Glossary of Love with Ameena AlJerman
3 September 2026
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
The Speculative Circle
Maktaba: A Speculative Thought Circle is a monthly gathering dedicated to collective reading, viewing, and discussion across disciplines. Rooted in the Arabic word for “library,” Maktaba takes the form of an open and horizontal learning environment where participants gather around a roundtable to reflect on texts and artistic practices, from exhibitions, books, film, and image to performance and sound, considering the ways they speak to one another and what we might speculate from them.
Open to ages 18 and above.
No prior experience is required
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The Public Studio: Sculpting, Folding, Printing, Upcycling
6 September 2026
11:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Special Events
The Public Studio is a creative day of open, drop-in making at 421. Four stations will be set up facilitated by four experienced practitioners. Move between stations at your own pace, try something new, and leave with something you make with your own hands.
Open to all ages.
No prior experience is required
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Tatreez Circle with Joanna Barakat
13 September 2026
11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Tatreez Circle
Join us for Tatreez Circle with Joanna Barakat, a gathering where makers come together to embroider meaningful motifs and connect through the shared practice of stitching.
Participants are asked to bring their own embroidery projects and supplies.
Basic knowledge of tatreez is required.
Open to ages 18 and above
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Too Odd to Translate: Food Styling & Storytelling with Two Odd
19 September 2026
2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Studio Seminars
Led by Akshita Garud from Two Odd, this studio seminar explores storytelling through space, object, and material. Participants will work in teams to translate abstract themes into three-dimensional installations built entirely from unconventional, everyday materials, moving through the full arc of a real creative commission from concept to capture.
Open to ages 18 and above.
No prior experience is required
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Maktaba: Theater Solidarities with Maitha Alsuwaidi
24 September 2026
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Cornerstone Programming
Maktaba: A Speculative Thought Circle is a monthly gathering dedicated to collective reading, viewing, and discussion across disciplines. Rooted in the Arabic word for "library," Maktaba takes the form of an open and horizontal learning environment where participants gather around a roundtable to reflect on texts and artistic practices, from exhibitions, books, film, and image to performance and sound, considering the ways they speak to one another and what we might speculate from them.
Open to ages 18 and above.
No prior experience is required
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