Al Jazeera World

Painting in the Dark | Al Jazeera World

Turkish artist Esref Armagan is one of the few blind commercial painters in the world. Blind from birth, he learned to draw by touching and copying carved shapes. As he grew older, Armagan adapted techniques which allowed him to add perspective to his work. A few critics suggested that his art was not his own, a claim refuted by those who witnessed him paint. Today, Armagan’s artwork is in demand internationally. He also mentors young visually impaired children, demonstrating how they can achieve their artistic dreams.

Med Hondo: A founding father of African cinema | Al Jazeera World

The story of Mohamed "Med" Hondo, from his humble beginnings in Mauritania, to smuggling himself on board a ship to France, to finding recognition as a modern African cinema director and actor. Hondo’s films challenged racism in Europe and historic colonialism in Africa. He also found great success dubbing the voices of famous Hollywood actors into French, including Eddie Murphy and Morgan Freeman. French children recognise Hondo as the voice of Donkey in Shrek. But to a generation of cinema-goers, Hondo was a radical filmmaker who used his creativity as a tool to fight injustice, wherever he saw it.

An American in My Home | Al Jazeera World

Morgan and Perry are two young American students looking to expand their horizons through a college placement programme. They left the United States to spend time living with local families in Morocco. Morgan is in Rabat, hoping to improve her Arabic and learn the local culture. Perry is in a remote mountain village 230km away, staying with a family and their small children. For both of them, this immersion is a rich and lasting experience, in which they learn the language and culture of Morocco. For one, it becomes life-changing when she falls in love.

DOCUMENTARY | Songs of the Gulf | Al Jazeera World

Racist slurs, satire, an ancient Islamic "advert" and World Cup football pride are the inspirations for these four song stories from the Arabian Gulf. In Kuwait, the Haydoo song was born as an expression of pride in the face of unpleasant slurs in the 1981 World Cup; in Oman, a satirical song about a cat and mouse is really about the political situation in the 1970s; an old Qatari phrase, "shoomelah", meaning "rise to him", became the lyrics of the country’s main football anthem; and in Iraq, an ancient poem about the virtues of black veils became what is considered the oldest "advertisement" in Islamic history. Away from politics and war, this musical mini-tour sheds light and offers insights into a region often poorly represented in the media. Al Jazeera World: - YouTube: https://aje.me/AJWplaylist - Twitter: https://twitter.com/AlJazeeraWorld - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AlJazeeraWorld - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_aljazeeraworld/ - Website: https://www.aljazeera.com/program/al-jazeera-world/ #AlJazeeraWorld

Turkey’s Senkaya Bus | Al Jazeera World

The minibus service operates even when temperatures drop to minus 35 degrees Celsius (-31 degrees Fahrenheit). Despite the treacherous roads, regular passengers journey to the nearest town, Senkaya. This trip allows a tight-knit group of friends to banter, bond and discuss their challenging lives. This remote bus service also reveals local environmental change. There has been a reduction in snowfall which used to help keep the soil fertile, but now the frozen-solid ground has become harder to farm, threatening livelihoods here. In Turkey’s Senkaya Bus, we get an insight into communities, cultures and environmental change in eastern Turkey.