Artwork
Iran
Cultural Narratives, commissioned by Rima Nasser, features works from established and emerging artists in the Middle
Lebanon
Artwork
Lebanon
Born in Damascus in 1942, Simone Fattal studied philosophy in Paris and Beirut before emigrating to California in 1980, during the Lebanese Civil War.
Iran
Born in Tehran, Iran in 1986, Sepideh Zamani completed her BFA in
Sculpture at the Art University of Tehran. She began her artistic
venture as a graphic designer, working in advertising companies.
Tunisia
Since his first solo exhibition, Nabil Saouabi has participated in numerous exhibitions in Tunisia and abroad, including in biennials such as Dak’art, Beijing, and the 5th International Biennial of Engraving of Île de France.
Syria
Born in Syria in 1982, Tarek Butayhi studied painting at Damascus University. He focuses on female figures in his work that seek to challenge traditional representations of femininity in art – namely, the role of women as muses.
Lebanon
Biography Born in 1969 in Lebanon, Anachar Basbous lives with his family in Rachana, a village renowned for its open-air sculptures overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. Raised in a family of artists—his father,…
Jordan
Biography Hind Nasser, born in Amman in 1940, graduated with a BA in History and Politics from Beirut College for Women (now the Lebanese American University) in 1961. She began studying painting…
Iran
Artwork
Syria
Gylan Safadi was born in Sweida, Syria in 1977 and studied at the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Damascus.
Lebanon
Artwork
Syria
Abdullah Murad was born in Homs in 1944 and studied Fine Arts at the University of Damascus. His experimental paintings and drawings are influenced by the fauvist colour palette and the abstract expressionist movement.
Iran
Biography Sadra Baniasadi, born in 1991 in Tehran, Iran, is a painter. He studied painting at Tehran Art University from 2010 to 2015 and began exhibiting his work in galleries during his…
Lebanon
Artwork
Iran
Artwork
Tunisia
Born in Tunisia in 1976, self-taught artist Ymen Berhouma lives and works between Paris and Tunis. Her debut in the art world began through her vibrant painting whose characters invited spectators into a dream-like world.
Palestine
Mohammed Al Hawajri was born in 1976 in the Bureij refugee camp in Gaza. Between 1999 and 2001, Al Hawarji participated in the Darat Al Funun Summer Academy in Amman, Jordan led by Marwan Qassab Bashi, and in 2008 he received a grant to study at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris.
Palestine
Mohammed Joha was born in 1978 in Gaza. His paintings, though playful in style and bold in colour, offer a critique of Arab and Western media bias and their (mis)representation of Arab culture.
Iran
Artwork
Palestine
Born in 1983, Abdulrahman Katanani was raised in the Sabra refugee camps (Beirut, Lebanon). He is a third-generation refugee
since his grandparents fled their hometown, Jaffa in Palestine, settling in Shatila after the Nakba in 1948.
Iran
Biography Azadeh Ghotbi was born in Iran and is currently based in London. She is a painter and photographer who studied International Relations at Brown University in the United States. Her work…
Iran
B. 1990, Tehran, living in Vienna since 2008.
Iran
Biography Navid Azimi Sajadi, born in 1982 in Tehran, Iran, graduated in Painting from Azad University, Tehran, before moving to Rome to study at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma. He…
Lebanon
Born in Beirut, Ginane Makki Bacho is a multimedia artist whose work offers a unique perspective on the disruptive and brutal effects of the Lebanese Civil War and on-going wars in the contemporary world.
Iraq
Mahmood Shubbar was born in Babel in 1965. He received a bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from Baghdad University in 1986 and later went on to receive his Ph.D. in Fine Arts.
Lebanon
Artwork
Iran
Nariman Farrokhi was born in Tehran, Iran in 1985. He has created a unique approach to language, using words for visual impact,
favouring simplicity and directness.
Iran
Biography Rozita Sharafjahan, born in 1962 in Tehran, Iran, began her art education at the age of 15. She continued her studies and graduated with an MA degree from Tehran University in…
Iran
Born in Tehran, Iran in 1945, Fereydoun Ave is a central figure in the Iranian art scene as he is one of the most important and influential
contemporary artists of Iran.
Lebanon
Artwork
Iran
Biography Mostafa Sarabi was born in 1983 in Kermanshah, Iran. He received an MA in Painting from Shahed University, Iran. Sarabi employs a simple and direct visual language to create mysterious landscapes,…
Syria
Ismail Al Rifai was born in Mayadin in 1967 and studied Fine Art at the University of Damascus. Al Rifai has served as a member of the Syrian Fine Arts Syndicate as well as the UAE Fine Arts Society and currently works as a researcher in the Department of Culture and Information in Sharjah.
Lebanon
Born in Lebanon in 1942, Chaouki Chamoun studied Fine Art at the Lebanese University, and received his MFA from Syracuse University in New York. Between 1975 and 1979, Cahmoun continued his studies in Aesthetics and Studio Art at New York University where he was a full time fellow in the PhD programme.
Lebanon
Biography Abir Tabbarrah Tukan, born on December 26, 1976, in Como, Italy, is a contemporary Arab artist specialising in oil painting. She grew up between war-torn Beirut, Lebanon, and peaceful Amman, Jordan,…
Lebanon
Nadim Karam is a multidisciplinary artist, whose work incorporates painting, drawing, and sculpture through a distinct artistic style that draws from Oriental and Japanese theories of space.
Palestine
Monther Jawarbeh was born and raised in Al Arroub refugee camp, in Bethlehem. His expressive portraits of Palestinian men whose nationality is marked by the keffiyeh they wear reflect Jawarbeh’s interest in expressing a collective Palestinian identity.
Iraq
Born in 1955 in Hollywood, California to Iraqi parents, Maysaloun Faraj grew up between the USA (1955-68) in Baghdad, where she obtained a BSc in Architecture from Baghdad University 1973-78) and London, where she furthered her art education and where she has been living and working since 1982.
Lebanon
Born in Saida in 1979, Tagreed Darghouth studied painting and sculpture at the Lebanese Academy of Fine Art.
Egypt
Born in Alexandria in 1977, Klay Mohamed Abdel Aziz Kassem graduated from the Faculty of Fine Arts in Alexandria in 2000 and holds an MA (2008) and a Ph.D. (2013) in Art Studies.
Palestine
Dena Matar lives and works in Gaza, where she received a degree in Fine Art and Education from Al Aqsa University. Her dynamic use of color and line offers an optimistic and hopeful view of life in Gaza, lending a psychological dimension to her paintings, rather than representing a region crippled by Israeli incursions and blockades. Despite her young age and the profound challenges of living under siege, she has made a vital contribution to artistic production in Gaza through her paintings and by acting as a mentor for artists. She is a member of the ELTIQA artist collective in Gaza City and has participated in several local exhibitions and workshops in Gaza in cooperation with A.M. Qattan Foundation, the French Cultural Centre, and other institutions. Matar’s unique style, which critics have likened to the colorful and unique compositions of Juan Miro and Pablo Picasso, has gained her international recognition. Her work has been exhibited in Switzerland, Geneva, France, and the Mosaic Rooms in London as part of their ‘Occupied Space’ exhibition in 2008. In 2012, she was selected to participate in the artistic residence in Paris, Cité Internationale des Arts.
Egypt
Biography Nehad Saeed is a Cairo-based artist with a bachelor’s degree in graphic design and a master’s degree in fine arts from Helwan University, Cairo. She has participated in several biennials, including…
Lebanon
Born in 1970 in Beirut, Lebanon, Marwan Sahmarani studied at l’École Supérieur d’Art Graphique in Paris, France. His oil paintings are notable for his explosive use of color and frenetic brushwork that imbues the dense scenes he paints with energetic movement.
Tunisia
Born in Nabeul, Tunisia in 1951, Khaled Ben Slimane graduated from the Escola Massana of Barcelona in 1977 and then from the Technological Institute of Art in Tunisia in 1982. His multidisciplinary practice includes paintings on paper, canvas and wood. He is mostly known for his ceramic and bronze sculptures.
Iran
Biography Kaveh Irani is a visual artist from Iran. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Visual Arts from Emily Carr University in Vancouver, Canada, in 2006, and his Master of…
Tunisia
Born in 1983 in Sidi Bouzid, Slimen Elkamel is a young visual artist and an extensively published art critic for newspapers, publications, and art catalogues.
Lebanon
Lebanese artist Sarah Abou Mrad was born in 1988. She is a Fine Arts
graduate of Painting from the Lebanese University. In 2010 she established the Art department at “Sainte-Anne des Sœurs de Besançon” school in Beirut where she taught arts for 10 years.
Kuwait
Born in Kuwait, F160 is an artist that stands out for his current, “street” and comedic approach. He studied Advertising and Communication at the University of Oregon, USA. His graphic style thrives on its lightheartedness yet is not shy of dark material.
Lebanon
Biography Nada Rizk is a Lebanese Finnish artist specialising in ceramics and bronze. She holds a Master’s degree in Political Science and International Relations from the London School of Economics and a…
Lebanon
Artwork
Syria
Artwork