Program: Master of Arts in Global African Studies
Specialization: Museum and Critical Heritage Studies
Contact Email: 10004@gsu.ac.ae
Farah Fawzi Ali is a Master of Arts student in Global African Studies at The Africa Institute, Global Studies University, specializing in Museum and Critical Heritage Studies. From Egypt and the Philippines, she is a researcher, curator, and literary writer with experience as a cultural worker and independent creative. Her MA studies allow her to integrate classroom learning into her professional and creative practice.
Drawing on her mixed heritage, she focuses on the global intersections between Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Gulf region. Her research explores Afro-Asian heritage, Gulf diasporic communities, grassroots creative communities, and the socio-political and feminist dimensions of visual arts and literary writing, particularly in the ASEAN and SWANA regions. Her dissertation is centered on tracing the art history and geography of visual artists of African descent and reconciling Afro-Khaleeji creative legacies in the Gulf.
Academic Background
- B.A., Political Science, The American University in Cairo
Professional Experience
- Research Intern, Barjeel Art Foundation, UAE
- Community Book Club Moderator, Sharjah Book Authority, UAE
- English Programme Manager, Emirates Literature Foundation, UAE
- Research Assistant, College of Education, UAE University, UAE
Publications & Contributions
- 2026, Exhibition, Scene/Seen IV, Rizq Art Gallery, exhibiting artist
- 2025-2026, Exhibition, SUN™, Rays, Ripples, Residue, 421 Art Campus, exhibiting artist
- 2025, Fellowship, Excess Summer Writing Residency, Bayt Al Mamzar, focusing on a text-based project addressing excess within a Gulf context
- 2025, Exhibition, The Sala: A Selection of Khaleeji Magazines, Etihad Museum, curator
- 2024, Publication, epistolary poem to my plants, Ward Magazine x Unootha Magazine
- 2024, Publication, 1/2 Filipino = Fractioned Filipino in the Gulf, Ward Magazine x Unootha Magazine
- 2022, Exhibition, Youth Takeover: Smol, Jameel Arts Centre, co-curator
- 2022, Publication, African Art in Art Dubai 2022, Art Dubai
- 2021, Publications: Transitory Worlds (Postscript Magazine), Leaving A Message: A Review of After The Beep (Global Art Daily), Time for Tea: Reminiscing Routines (Postscript Magazine)
- 2021, Fellowship, The Assembly, Jameel Arts Centre
- 2020, Award, Ahmed Zewail Prize for Excellence, The American University in Cairo, for research paper Post COVID-19 Development in the Middle East: Why Environmental Sustainability Matters
In Their Own Words
“Being part of a diverse student and faculty community has provided a fruitful and generative experience. I am continually inspired and challenged by my peers, and our interactions in the classroom, corridors, and during weekend activities have laid a solid foundation for the global studies discourse that the program emphasizes.”
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