Nisaa Magazine made this interview with the artist Akram Hashem in its 31 eddition 2000November; we chose this extract from the interview :

Why did you choose cutting on marble as your profession, and what differentiate marble from materials used in oriental ornaments?
It's my father's and grandsires' original profession that my family worked on marble hundreds years ago. And some may think that marble is a deaf stone but I think that we can make it full of life through using Islamic engravings that are able to create original deep feelings in its beholder.
Marble is preferred to iron, copper, wood, gypsum because it is warmer and more original and this is save its solidity which enables it to last in spite of succession of seasons. Marble also still shines and its brightness increases over the years unlike copper, iron, and wood which colors become dull and pale.

Do you deal with marble as a profession or with the spirit of the artist who is able to create
beauty?