RISE, HABIBI at the Crypt Gallery May 28- June 14
10am-5pm daily
THIS IS A CONTRIBUTION BASED EXHIBITION: TICKETS HERE

Rise, Habibi • 50 Artists x 30 Poets • Women Collaborate across Centuries•

A defiant celebration of Arab and Muslim Women’s Creative Resistance. Breathtaking poems 1,000 years old inspire artists at The Crypt Gallery

In partnership with Saqi Books & Shubbak 2025, Radical Love’s ‘Rise, Habibi’ showcases the ground breaking poems of 30 Arab & Muslim women writing over 1,000 years ago, taken from Saqi’s cult collection ‘Classical Poems by Arab Women’ translated by Abdullah al-Udhari.

Words of these ancient poems (in original Arabic and English translation) were posted to 50 emerging artists across the world who reimagined these ancient words in photography, paint, sculpture and textile for a breathtaking and deeply personal exhibition unlike any other.

In times of crushing despair, we draw inspiration from warriors, saints, princesses and slaves who defied expectation and refused to be silenced as we celebrate the enduring legacy of female Arab and Muslim creative resistance.

‘better to live in hardship then end up as a whipping girl’ Zabba 9C Abbasid Dynasty

Over a thousand years old but timeless, short & sweet, in just a few lines 30 women bare their hearts and souls as mothers dote on babies, girls crush on forbidden boys (and girls), celebrated scholars rebel against patriarchy and the daughters of slaves revolt against greed, all using poetry as their form of creative expression and resistance.

‘Can’t you see we’ve become beetles run by a beetle boss?‘ Hajna 8C Baghdad

Breathing new life into those ancient poems are international artists primarily from Arab and Muslim cultures including Kazna Asker, Dana Barqawi, Malak Mattar, Azraa Motala, Ilona Szalay, Yara Said, Molly Crabapple, Hana Gamal, Zahra Marwan, Nadine Faraj, Lizzy Vartanian, Tamsin Abbott, Lena Kassicieh, Sheila Nortley, Saraiya Bah, Mariam Tafsiri, Reem Arkan, Miyuki Kasahara, Eylül Aslan, Nouf Alhimiary, Darin Ahmad, Chantey Dawal, Anouska Beckwith, Aula al Ayoubi, Farah Soobhan, Vean Ima, Nina Gadd, Cherryl Brunel, Hend al Mansour, Khadijah Rehman, Eli Wirija, Femi Tiwo, Kit Dambite, Samar Hejazi, Ana Cayuela Munoz, Hana Almilli, Michelle Dickson, Saba Siddiqui, Sandra Daniel, Timi Hayek, Dia Batal, Fatma Al Najjar, Enas Saeed & Maisa Mansour.

Rise, Habibi opens with live performances on May 28 and runs until June 14 at The Crypt Gallery, St Pancras where Caryatids oversee the magic of this female collaboration across centuries.

Please book your tickets using the QR code below and support this independent exhibition by giving a contribution towards the ticket of £5/ £10 (or more if you’ve got it!), profits after costs go to a charity in Gaza.

Follow us @radical_love_art

Curated by Róisín O’ Loughlin

Poster Image Dana Barqawi ‘She refused his whiteman’s burden’