Stories of Our City Stories of Our City

For Radwan Hashem, cycling is more than a sport—it’s a lifestyle. After undergoing a series of knee surgeries, the bike became a lifeline for him—as well as a teacher.  

As an essential part of their culture, the dagger is sacred among the Bedouin (nomadic) people, according to craftsman Nayif Abu Muhaysin, whose family has been making daggers for four generations. As such, he aims to help continue preserving traditional Bedouin heritage for future generations through his traditional, handmade daggers.

Ahmad Adnan Al-Eriqsousi’s love for the historic version of his hometown inspired him to begin to immortalize it through three-dimensional miniature models during his retirement.

Even at the young age of fourteen, Ghazal Al-Madadha already has quite an extensive acting résumé and began reciting poetry as young as six years old. As a Jordanian national arts ambassador, she aims to empower other girls to make headway in Arab society and culture through the arts and beyond.

As a self-proclaimed small town kid who grew up on her grandfather’s farm, Aubrey learned the value and joy of hands-on labor from observing and working alongside her family. During a successful run in the corporate world, various factors—including impending burnout—led Aubrey to begin seeking a creative outlet to combat and manage stress. A chance encounter with a scrapped piece of furniture at the apartment dumpster during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic led her into the world of furniture resale and restoration—and ultimately to her own restoration as a person and creative.

When Gazi Khattab began practicing Arabic calligraphy as a child, he would go downtown to study the plethora of shop signage and advertisements on display for guidance and inspiration. This exposure to the environmental street décor of Jordan’s capital city eventually led him to begin collecting and preserving old signs—some of which are now on display in his Old Signs of Amman Museum in the heart of the city.