Examines preservation as a process of cultural and institutional judgement. It asks how museums, archives and other knowledge institutions decide what to retain, what context to carry forward and what may be lost when material is separated from the histories and relationships that give it meaning.
The session considers how cultural memory can remain meaningful as collections move through changing institutional and digital environments. It asks what technology can make accessible, what it cannot interpret on its own and why human judgement remains essential to deciding how heritage is understood and transmitted.
Dr. Nada Shabout
Dr. Nada Shabout is currently a Visiting Professor of Art History and a Senior Investigator at al Mawrid Arab Center for the Study of Art at NYUAD. She is Regents Professor of Art History and the Coordinator of the Contemporary Arab and Muslim Cultural Studies Initiative (CAMCSI) at the University of North Texas. She is the founding president of the Association for Modern and Contemporary Art from the Arab World, Iran and Turkey (AMCA) and founding director of Modern Art Iraq Archive (MAIA). Shabout is a scholar and curator who has published widely on modern and contemporary Arab and Iraqi art. She is the author of Modern Arab Art: Formation of Arab Aesthetics, 2007; co-editor, New Vision: Arab Art in the 21st Century, 2009; and Modern Art in the Arab World: Primary Documents, MoMA, 2018. She has curated several important exhibitions, including the touring exhibition All Manner of Experiment: Legacies of the Baghdad Modern Art Group, Hessel Museum, CCS Bard, 2025 and NYUAD Galleries, 2026–2027, and its third reimagination, What Lingers in the Artist’s Mind: Experiments and Legacies of the Baghdad Modern Art Group, Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, 25 October 2026 – 6 February 2027. Shabout serves on the Founding Board of Directors, Visual Art Commission, Ministry of Culture, Saudi Arabia (2020–2023 and 2024–2027) and is the elected President of The Academic Research Institute in Iraq (TARII), July 2026.
Dr. Khawla El Akkili
Khawla El Akkili is an archives specialist with over twelve years of experience in library and archival science with a background in international studies and diplomacy. Her professional interests span digital archives, documentary heritage preservation, institutional memory, and the application of emerging technologies to archival practice. She is interested in colonial archives, the preservation and interpretation of historical collections, and the role of archives in documenting histories and supporting research. Her interests also extend to museums and exhibitions, with a focus on innovative approaches to presenting historical materials, exploring diverse historical narratives, and making cultural heritage accessible to wider audiences. She is passionate about examining the connections between archival practice, historical research, and public engagement. She currently serves as Digital Archives Specialist at the Africa Institute, Global Studies University, in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.