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Sadika Kammoun makes contemporary art from ancient techniques
Internationally recognized artist revives a lost tradition

Sadika Keskes-Kammoun is credited with resurrecting the art of blown glass that had been dormant in Tunisia since the 14th century.

Although glass working was introduced by the Phoenicians, it was actually the Arabs who elevated the art to an unprecedented stature. For reasons still unknown, glass blowing gradually disappeared from the region until Kammoun rediscovered this lost art.

Kammoun - a petite mother of two - says that she decided to pursue her art when, as a teenager, she saw someone blowing glass in a movie. She was hooked from that moment.

After earning a master's degree in art sciences at the Academie des Beaux Arts in Tunis, she went on to apprentice with the world renowned art glass master, Gianni Seguso, in Murano, Italy.

Kammoun, once back home, opened her own studio. Through her own initiative, she established herself in the art community in Tunisia in just three years. She recruited apprentices and built her kiln as well as the whitewashed building near Carthage, that now houses her workshop and gallery.

Her three-kiln workshop is always buzzing with activity. Kammoun hand blows a new collection every six months, before delegating the responsibilities of mass production over to her staff and apprentices. Kammoun finds that most young people are very motivated by the work despite difficult conditions. What is encouraging, Kammoun says, is that most of the young people choose to continue after the initial training period.

Kammoun lives on the same grounds as her work site, which makes it easier to combine her family and professional life.

"As [Tunisian] women, we have always combined the domestic, public, and artistic components of our lives. We have produced works of art from our homes to sell to the general public for centuries," says Kammoun. "I am doing nothing differently."

Kammoun's work reflects traditional Tunisian themes and household objects that are adapted to contemporary tastes. She experiments with color, materials and textures, leaving her distinctive mark on each piece. One of her most ambitious works is an immense chandelier that earned her a place in the Guinness Book of World Records.

She is currently collaborating with Alain Nadaud, a local author who has written a book on Berber nations. Her "bas relief" pieces depict scenes from the book, along with the author's handwritten text.

"If we lose sight of the specific elements that define our culture, we will also lose our identity," says Kammoun. "Tunisians are proud of their cultural heritage and it shows in the way they decorate their homes."

A great deal of Kammoun's time is also devoted to academic research. She has acquired an international reputation as both a glass technician and historian.

Just this fall, she presented a controversial abstract at the International Glass Conference in Vienna. Her presentation refutes conventional wisdom. Every textbook on the subject asserts the use of clay and sand molds in Roman glass. Kammoun tried to replicate the process and found it to be impossible. Her analysis of residue from ancient fragments has led her to the conclusion that Romans used an iron oxide compound rather than clay.

Kammoun's hard work and talent have earned her numerous prizes and recognition in Tunisia as well as internationally. She was chosen to represent African women in the arts at the International Women's Conference in Beijing.

Also a recipient of the Tunisian Presidential Award for Artistic Achievement, she was later chosen to serve as judge and advisor for the Award. Though she has held exhibits all over the world, she says that she is particularly proud of her show held in the U.S. Capitol in 1995.

Kammoun's success is a testament to her perfectionism.

"Ever since I opened my own studio thirteen years ago, I have never produced a piece that I was not proud of. If I am dissatisfied with a piece, I break it and start over," she says. "If I can't stand behind my art, I can't expect anyone else to appreciate it."

Kammoun's next step is to open up her art studio to resident artists. She hopes to showcase a variety of art forms - jewelry, painting, carpets, etc. - that are indigenous to Tunisia. Foreign artists will also be invited to exchange knowledge with their Tunisian counterparts.

"I consider myself to be a permanent student. There is always something new to learn in the creative process," says Kammoun.