Because of its location and history, Jordan forms one of the important links in the chain forming the Middle East. Perhaps best known for its archeological sites and its spectacular landscapes, it also stands out for its colorful handicrafts and the flavors of its local dishes. Iconic Petra, the Dead Sea, the bustling capital and the dramatic valley of Wadi Rum are just a few of the places you can glimpse to witness the passage of diverse civilizations which have formed part of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. And just as the geography of a country may reveal secrets about its past geological changes and developments, so they say that some people’s lives are written on the marks and wrinkles seen on their faces.

In the first part of this exhibition, held with the cooperation of the Jordanian Tourism Office and the Jordanian Embassy in Spain, Casa Árabe invites you to explore the rich legacy that has emerged from this country’s culture and history through the faces of its people. Photographer Ghassan Sela toured the entire kingdom in order to portray a wide variety of people: from farmers in the North to nomads, Chechens, Circassians, Druze, Copts and Orthodox Christians, to name just a few. Each portrait reveals a unique story helping to shape the Jordanian mosaic.

The second part of the exhibition is devoted to the sculptures created by Anees Maani. The work by Maani, a Jordanian sculptor based in Catalonia, explores the evolution of forms in nature and human culture. They are traces, vestiges and signposts of distant events. The artist, raised in the environs of the country’s best-known archeological site, Petra, researches the history of these formations and observes their growth and decay. He places a particular focus on the different materials used and the effects of the environment; the forms they take on and why they gain notoriety in different contexts or in different organisms.
 
The current show at Casa Árabe includes his work Arabia Petraea Felix, which studies and explores ancient abstract geometric sculptures found in the Nabataean kingdom and in ancient Yemen, as well as Pedazos de Petra (Bits of Petra) and a few of his Miniatures.