Courtesy of Sityana Abdu

Zawiyas are sacred spaces in North African culture, where locals would gather to worship and pray, students studied religious texts and weary travelers sought hospitality. Many of these spiritual sites have fallen into neglect; Sityana Abdu’s ’26 exhibition seeks to preserve their memory. 

On Dec. 5, Abdu presented “Remember(ing) Zawiyas,” a culmination of her ethnographic research in the Medina of Sousse, Tunisia –– an archaeological complex from the early centuries of Islam in the Maghreb. The exhibition was accompanied by a panel featuring Abdu and 2024 Yale World Fellow and heritage preservation expert Soraya Hosni, moderated by Yale Divinity School Lecturer Abdul Rehman Malik. 

“Observing the different state of the buildings–abandoned, repurposed and fully in use–guided my questioning of space, sacredness, and heritage revitalization,” Abdu said. “Space becomes sacred through rituals and care, but what happens when that care fades?”

Abdu met Hosni through her fellowship as a student researcher with The New Medina, which Hosni founded. The New Medina is a creative and research-focused residency that seeks to revive the world’s Old Cities and heritage sites. 

Hosni’s research centers around sacred Islamic architecture, where Sufi traditions once thrived. She mentored Abdu during her fieldwork.

“[Abdu’s project] was the beginning of a beautiful collaboration for our archival initiative and for spearheading our revitalization project,” Hosni shared in her curator’s statement. “I see potential – not just for preservation, but for revival.”

Hosni described the exhibit as “the brainchild of our collaboration.” She said she helped Abdu select the larger ideas, photographs and clips that are currently exhibited at the Afro American Cultural Center’s second-floor gallery.

The gallery is managed by Kadjata Bah ’26, who advocated for using the space more. According to Bah, the space exists for students like Abdu, “who have amazing artistic talent and the potential to make their own mark.”

“When we received Sityana’s proposal, we were excited to work with her right off the bat,” said Bah.

This exhibit invites viewers to engage topics such as heritage preservation, the relationship between space and spirituality, and future-facing revitalization.

Abdu recounts how documenting tangible aspects of Islamic culture, as well as the caretakers who preserved them, deepened her appreciation for her faith and its role in “creating spaces of belonging and connection.”

According to Abdu, she felt convicted to thoroughly capture the remnants of these spaces in her photos –– a conviction, Abdu said, that seemed divine.

Her archival efforts may help to make future restoration projects possible, should any initiative or institution desire to revive these sites.

“If these practices wanted to be replicated, there’s now visual evidence of it,” she said. 

Along with the zawiyas, of equal importance to Abdu were the women critical to preserving the spiritual culture there. They welcomed visitors, guided rituals and maintained the physical space.

According to Abdu, it was a tradition commonly passed down through the mothers.

“The women are the custodians and caretakers of heritage,” observes Abdu.

During her research, Abdu realized that their significance was often unrecognized by the larger community. Intentionally, Abdu chose to only interview the women who tended to the sites, and in doing so, celebrated their commitment as the keyholders to ancient knowledge and practices.

Abdu hopes that the exhibit will challenge visitors to reflect on their own family and community stories and to view heritage as an intentional act of preservation.

“Heritage is not just what we inherit, it’s what we choose to preserve,” said Abdu.

Noting the ongoing violence in the world, she continued and said that culture and heritage are often the first casualties of war. Yet, they can also be lost through human neglect, she said. And once heritage is lost, it is hard to bring it back.

“Remember(ing) Zawiyas” will run from Dec. 5 to 11, 2024. Show hours are 4 to 9 p.m. Monday-Friday and 12 to 2 p.m. Saturday-Sunday.