News

First international art festival opens in Maldives

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has inaugurated the first international art festival hosted in the Maldives.

The Faruma International Youth Art Festival 2023 is an initiative of the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Community Empowerment and organised in association with local artists. The seven-day festival aims to showcase the artistic and creative works of prominent artists from different parts of the country. The festival also aims to bring together past artists and talented artisans of different age groups and provide a platform for emerging talents.

Speaking about the festival. Minister of Youth, Sports and Community Empowerment Ahmed Mahloof reaffirmed the pledge to continue to work to provide various platforms for artists to showcase their talent. As such, he said that the festival showcases the extent to which the government is working to provide opportunities to artists.

The festival features artists from a total of 10 fields. These include drawing, painting, photography, culinary arts, and music. The festival also featured the works of 80 artists and artisans from eight countries. The festival will be open from May 8-13 at the Maldives Centre for Social Education (MCSE).