We The People: DIVERSITY
Chamber Music America’s 2025 Ensemble of the Year, the Apollo Chamber Players, invited the Islamic Arts Society to partner with them for an evening of dialogue, visual arts, and music to celebrate Houston’s multicultural landscape. IAS President, Shaheen Rahman proudly represented the Islamic Arts Society in explaining the mission and work of Islamic Arts Society to this public event audience as part of a pre-concert panel discussion. The panel was moderated by St. John Flynn, former Arts and Culture Director of Houston Public Media, and included Apollo’s founding Director Matthew Detrick, and worldclass composer, Professor Reza Vali of Carnegie Melon University, IAS artists featured live Arabic calligraphy and a curated Islamic arts display for the audience in the Zilkha Hall front lobby. Art curated by Gail Mebane.
Participating artists for the curated display: Nizar Macnojia, Nihal Sonmez, Morad Jasim, Sana Mirza, Fariba Abedin, Mustafa Younuszad
Photos courtesy of IAS and Lynn Lane Photography.