Barjeel's new poetry prize is inspired by these 20 Arab artworks

The prize, which is available to those who write in both English and Arabic, aims to encourage fresh engagement with Arab paintings from the Barjeel collection

Abdel Hadi El Gazzar's 'Two People in Space Outfits', circa early 1960s. Barjeel Art Foundation

Suha Shoman's 'Chanson Mystique', circa early 1980s. Barjeel Art Foundation

Inji Efflatoun 'Dreams of the Detainee', 1961. Barjeel Art Foundation

Naim Ismail's 'Al Fiddaiyoun' (Freedom Fighters), 1969. Barjeel Art Foundation

Dia Al Azzawi's 'A Wolf Howls: Memories of a Poet', 1968. Barjeel Art Foundation

Mona Hatoum's 'Witness', 2009. Barjeel Art Foundation

Leila Nseir's 'The Martyr' (The Nation), 1978. Barjeel Art Foundation

Safia Farhat's 'La Mariée' (The Bride), 1963. Barjeel Art Foundation

Hamed Ewais's 'Le Gardien de la vie' (The Protector of Life). Barjeel Art Foundation

Kamala Ibrahim Ishaq's 'Untitled' (“Zaar”), 1973. Barjeel Art Foundation

Asim Abu Shakra's 'Cactus with City in the Background', 1988. Barjeel Art Foundation

Huguette Caland's 'Bribes de Corps' (Body Parts), 1971. Barjeel Art Foundation

Munira Al Kazi's 'Untitled' (Crucifixion), circa late 1960s. Barjeel Art Foundation

Ibrahim El-Salahi's 'The Last Sound', 1964. Barjeel Art Foundation

Zeinab Abdel Hamid's 'Quartier Populaire', 1956. Barjeel Art Foundation

Hassan Sharif's 'Black and White', 1985. Barjeel Art Foundation

Gazbia Sirry's 'Portrait of a Nubian Family', 1962. Barjeel Art Foundation

Mohammed Issiakhem's 'Femme et Mur' (Woman and Wall). Barjeel Art Foundation

Marwan Kassab-Bachi's 'Three Palestinian Boys', 1970. Barjeel Art Foundation

Afifa Aleiby's 'War Painting' (The Destruction of Iraq), 1991. Barjeel Art Foundation

In Abdul Hadi El Gazzar's Two People in Space Outfits, a figure stares back at the viewer with a solemn look. He is wearing a large, round headpiece that the painter seems to suggest is an astronaut's helmet. It is, of course, a beekeeper's suit, which his companion wears, too. The painter has clearly seen something fresh in their garb, and the men stare as if unamused by this dreamy interpretation.

Can you think of a lyrical way to unpack the relationship between El Gazzar and his two subjects? Maybe the work has evoked something else in you that you’d like to explore in verse? If that’s the case, you might want to submit to the Barjeel Poetry Prize.

The painting is one of 20 works that the Barjeel Art Foundation is inviting poets from around the world to respond to in its first poetry competition.

Scroll through the gallery above to see all 20 artworks.

Poetry and art have had a long history of mutual inspiration and the prize – which is taking submissions in English and Arabic – aims to encourage fresh engagement with Arab paintings from the Barjeel collection.

The prize is taking place across six categories: English-language poems by authors between the ages of 14 and 18 with Arab heritage; English-language poems by adult authors of Arab heritage; English-language poems by international authors between the ages of 14 and 18; English-language poems by international authors from around the world; Arabic-language poems by writers between the ages of 14 and 18; and Arabic-language poems by adult authors.

On Barjeel's judging panel are the award-winning and widely acclaimed poets Naomi Shihab Nye, Hala Alyan, Raymond Antrobus, Tishani Doshi, Asmaa' Azaizeh and Golan Haji.

The foundation will be accepting submissions until Wednesday, September 30, and winners will be announced the first week of December.

The prize offers cash awards of $500 (Dh1,836) for first place and $250 for one runner-up in each category. The winning poems will also be published in the literary magazine Rusted Radishes and displayed in the Barjeel museum beside the paintings they are based on.

The prize’s guidelines state: “How to respond to the painting of your choice is open to interpretation. The relationship between poem and painting could be direct or tangential; you may choose to engage with the work, the painter’s story, or to address what the art evokes in you. The conversation the poem has with the painting can challenge and / or echo it.”

Visit www.barjeelartfoundation.org to learn about the different categories, view the paintings and read the prize guidelines.