An Interview with Reedah El-Saie, Director of Mica Gallery

MICA GALLERY: THE FIRST GALLERY TO SPECIALIZE IN MODERN & CONTEMPORARY ISLAMIC ART IN THE UK

Reedah El-Saie has made a name for herself both in Britain and around the world promoting the work of contemporary artists inspired by Islamic art. She has often been called upon to curate important exhibitions in both the Middle East and South Asia. A lawyer by training, El-Saie switched careers to follow her passion for Islamic art. Before launching the Mica Gallery, she had founded and managed ArRum a multifaceted business which also showcased modern and contemporary Islamic art. El-Saie has been recognized for her role and success in both the cultural and business spheres; most recently, she made the 2010 European Muslim Women of Influence short list.

How did it all start?
Mica Gallery was founded in 2007 after I completed a Foundation course in Contemporary Art at Chelsea College, followed by a Diploma at The Prince of Wales School of Traditional arts in the VITA (Visual Islamic & Traditional Arts) Department. I felt that there was an abundance of artists specializing in this niche of Islamic art and I knew lots of collectors and friends who wanted to buy contemporary Islamic art but there was no organized way of introducing the two. It was at this point that I set up Mica Gallery, initially as an online website selling contemporary Islamic art, working from home.

How would you define contemporary Islamic art?
We have our own criteria and definition of what we consider to be contemporary Islamic art. Modern Islamic art is art which is directly inspired by traditional Islamic art and architecture, and we define Contemporary Islamic art as that which is informed or inspired by a sense of Islamic culture or heritage, the Levant regions, Muslim identity and international issues, irrespective of the artist’s race or faith. Mica is in fact an acronym for Modern Islamic & Contemporary Art.

The rest of the article you can read in the magazine.