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Gita Sellmann's love of
world cultures has taken her around the globe several
times. Of the hundreds of cultures she experienced firsthand,
she developed a special affinity with the peoples of
the Middle East and North Africa.
The result of Gita's appreciation
of the Arab and Muslim world led her to share her positive
experiences with others. In 1989, she began inviting
friends to Marrakech and Stockholm for courses and lectures
about Arab culture. Three years later, "Academia
Arabesca" offered it's first course, "Close
contact with Arab Culture," In Gita's Marrakech
home. That introductory course became the flagship of
the Institute's educational programmes.
Word of mouth soon began
making the rounds in educational and governmental circles
in the Nordic countries. Academia Arabesca hosted students
and teachers from art and architectural colleges, religion
faculties, sociologists, and the Swedish Ministry of
Immigration, among others. It's activities expanded
greatly through collaboration with Moroccan university
professors and other specialists, as well as educational
and cultural institutions.
As Academia Arabesca continued
growing, its staff began to be consulted by radio, television,
film and music producers. Through it all, individuals
and groups have also come to research, study, paint,
rehearse, write, and engage in many other ways with
Moroccan culture.
Gita singing at a two
a.m. jam session with Saharoui musicians and dancers
from Goulimime, circa 1968
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