“House of Arts” is a unique cultural and artistic phenomenon in Homs

Authentic singing, traditional music and ambiences of joy are all details present in the “House of Arts” in the Hamidiya neighborhood of Old Homs. It returns its visitors back to the days of a beautiful time in a place whose walls are decorated with pictures of Legends of Arabic singing, in addition to some heritage items and paintings of plastic art.

Mr. Nabil Nahas who is an engineer at the Syrian Gas Company, musician and the owner of the House of Arts , said, ” As a result of the war   , I was displaced from my home in the Al-Hamidiya neighborhood to my hometown of Mashta Al-Helu, but my daily suffering for two and a half years, which I spent going to work from the village to the city, made me seriously think about returning to my home in the neighborhood, which was almost deserted at that time. I thought, ‘ How can my kids grow up in a neighborhood that’s full of concrete barriers, half of its houses are demolished and the other half is almost abandoned?’ How can I protect them from all this ugliness? This is where the idea of creating a” house of Arts” arose, since in such an environment only art can make a difference. I decided to use art to bring beauty and peace to people’s lives to alleviate their suffering from war and its consequences.

In 2016, I rented a spacious Arab house, but it was demolished and damaged. With two workers, I began removing and transporting the rubble, which took six months. After that, I started to equip the place with a purely personal effort without any help from any official or informal entity. ”

Mr. Nahas went on to say, “My faith in the idea of the project made me very excited and So I finished the work quickly. I started with 25 chairs and 10 tables, which I made myself, and the financial return for the first working day was 65 thousand Syrian pounds in 2017.

I was and still am working not for money, for me it is not an investment project, but an attempt to restore the beauty and heritage of my city, which I adore, we are people who value art, music, and beauty, and we deserve life.”

” Thank God, I was able to contribute through the “House of Arts” to the creation of a unique high-end Heritage Art state that offers music for free, and this, as I think, does not exist in any Arab country.” Mr. Nahas added.

He explained that The House of Arts receives a lot of musicians, intellectuals, university students, retirees and many important personalities in the province. It also hosted a very special evening organized by the Dar al Funun Club in cooperation with the Syrian Scientific Historical Society, as the House of Arts is a friend of both sides. In the old headquarters, the House held 3 workshops entitled “Draw your first oil painting in the House of arts.”

“The musical heritage is a part of the country’s heritage and music always forms the identity of any homeland, so this heritage must be preserved and introduced to new generations.” Mr. Nahas concluded.

Fouad Haddad, a civil engineer and one of the permanent guests of the House of Arts, says, ” I visit this cultural-artistic cafe every day to enjoy traditional music and high-class music, where musical evenings are held periodically. This place is frequented by a group of amateur and professional musicians and well-known band owners in Homs. As you can see, the cafe is talking about itself and depicting its identity.  Visitors to this place are art and music lovers and a group of people who do not know each other play and sing together. They are brought together by music and leave the place as good friends.”

“We hope that this project will be a start for other similar projects in the future.” Fuad concluded.

Michel El Jamal, a mechanical engineering student at Baath university, says: “I became interested in music when I started visiting the House of Arts and Mr. Nabil Nahas, the owner of the house, was one of the most prominent supporters of me to develop my love of music. This wonderful house has managed to attract a large number of music and art lovers from different age groups and artistic interests, as well as many artists who hold wonderful heritage art evenings.”

When I started frequenting the House of Arts, the oud tones attracted me to the point that I bought an oud and started practicing here in this place, and after about a year, thanks to the support of everyone, especially the artist Fadi El Kash and the rest of the other musicians who frequent this place, I was able to master playing the oud.”

Michel went on to say, ” I learned a lot in the field of playing and got to know a lot of musicians within this place who helped me to complete my artistic career. Music is another world and a universal language of understanding and harmony between people.  It is also a means of rest and release from our negative energies, and thank God I could develop this artistic energy that was latent in me and woke up thanks to the House of Arts.”

Fadi El-Kashi, one of the leading musicians of the House of Arts, says, ” I visited the House of Arts with my friends for the first time about a year ago and we enjoyed its high-end artistic ambience. Here I found what I wanted, especially since I have been practicing my hobby of playing and singing for more than 15 years.

I started studying music with Byzantine hymns, Maqamat and music theories. I learned to play the lute and the piano. In the House of Arts, the artist experiences his performance and the impact of this performance on the audience. Here is a free space for music, and this is something that is not available anywhere in Homs and probably in all of Syria.”

Fadi added, ” In such places there are usually specific controls and programs, but the spontaneity of performing at the House of Arts is what distinguishes it, every day there are different art shows.”

Mr. Sameer Al-Akkari, a retired mathematics teacher, says, ” the House of Arts has refreshed our souls and renewed our daily routine, especially retirees. We come here every day to enjoy the traditional artistic atmosphere and spend happy and quiet evenings for a small amount of money.”

“I used to visit the House of Arts since it was founded in its old headquarters and I was so addicted to going there that when the House of Arts moved to its new headquarters and it took some time to be equipped, I felt that I had lost a dear and quiet oasis for the comfort of the soul.

Honestly, I’m not exaggerating if I tell you that I’m reluctant to travel to America, where my wife and daughter live, because of my wonderful evenings at the art house.” Mr. Al-Akkari concluded.

Violinist Yasser Al-Ashqar says, ” the House of Arts is a prestigious heritage phenomenon that has become a landmark in Homs. I’ve been going to this place since it was founded. I made friends with intellectuals and musicians from Damascus, Al-Sweida and Aleppo who visited this place and we held joint concerts within the House of Arts. We hope that the phenomenon of the House of Arts will be repeated in Homs and throughout Syria.”

Interviewed by Amal Farhat