More than 30 artists participate in the first Nubian Arts Festival

Cairo - 6 May: The Ashri Nariti Hotel in Aswan launched its first Nubian Arts Festival on 1st May and is expected to continue till May 7.

“We chose the project's location in West Suhail to build a gate between the heritage and the present, transforming West Suhail into an eco-tourism village in Egypt such as Santorini or Chefchaouen in Morocco’’ said Mei Badr, the festival's supervisor and hotel designer.

The festival includes exhibitions of paintings, singing and traditional Nubian industries, in addition to a workshop to teach the manufacturing of traditional lanterns with local materials under the supervision of Dr. Mohammed Al-Najjar, assistant professor at the Faculty of Art Education.



‘’We are not talking about just a hotel, but a new development model that we want to offer to our country. For example, it was agreed that 10% of the hotel's revenues would be for the development of medical clinics in the region.



Negotiations are underway with Karam Solar Company to implement a solar power station serving the region.” said Ahmed Saker, the owner of the project idea.

Sakr added that the expansion plans also includes introducing Aswan as a place suitable for medical tourism, characterized by its dry sand and rich silt which is extremely beneficial to the skin.



"We aim to put Egypt on the map of eco-tourism, watching migratory birds and others, and the Nubian Arts Festival is part of the image that we would like to market for the sake of increasing the tourism rate, despite all the difficult circumstances," Saqr said.

Prominent Egyptian artists from various governorates, about 30, have attended the festival to participate in the drawings inspired by the Nubian spirit, including artist Mohamed Wahba and sculptor Ayman Farghali.

The festival is held under the patronage of Castello International Paints, which provided special paints to withstand the heat of the sun and the weather in Aswan.