Cities have always been a source of creative inspiration for artists, but unlike other cities, Beirut seems constantly in need of being described, defined, defined again, seized: presented and re-presented. For some, it becomes an obsession, for others a need to document the present when even the past fails to remain latent. There have been many screenings on Beirut and there will be many more to come. The city’s unidentifiable urban landscape, its ephemeral atmospheres, it's real and fantasized transmutations, constant transfigurations, haunted images and mutable histories reassess its constant urge for representation.
Curator: Amanda Abi Khalil.
Siska (Elie Alexandre Habib) was born in Beirut in 1984, and graduated from the Lebanese Academy of Fine Arts ALBA in Beirut with a master degree in cinema studies and film directing. Today he lives and works between Beirut and Berlin. Siska was a former member of the Hip-hop group "Kitaa Beirut’’, he produced music, wrote and performed live for more then seven years. After finishing his music career, he expanded his interests to become involved in various experimental film productions and art venues where he developed new approaches to his practice.
Ali Cherri was born in Beirut in 1976, and graduated in Graphic Design from the American University in Beirut. In parallel to his design work, he completed his Master Degree in Performing Arts at DasArts (Amsterdam) in 2005. Cherri is a visual artist working with video, installation, performance, multimedia and print. His recent exhibitions include Bad Bad Images, a solo show at Galerie Imane Farès (2012); Dégagements, Institut du Monde Arabe (2012); Exposure 2012, Beirut Art Center (2011); Southern Panorama, VideoBrasil (2011); Beirut, Kunsthalle Vienna (2011); and A Fleur de Peau, a solo exhibition at Galerie Regard Sud (2011).
Laure de Selys is a Belgian and French artist, born in Geneva in 1986. She studied at Universität der Kunst and at Académie Libanaise des Beaux Arts (Beirut) in their respective new media departments. In 2010, she received a Masters in Fine Arts from the Ecole Nationale des Arts Visuels de la Cambre (Brussels). From 2006 to 2010, she has adapted, written, filmed and acted for aether9, a collaborative web performance project focusing on remote real-time storytelling. Her work has been exhibited in several collective exhibitions in Berlin (Imago FotoKunst Gallery), Brussels (Atelier 340, Dexia Art Center, Halles de Schaerbeek), Paris (Access&Paradox Art Fair) and Beirut (Beirut Art Center, Badguer-Araman factory, Art Lounge). In 2009, her work was also presented in Palestine for the Riwaq Biennale as a resident of Al-Mahatta Gallery and in 2012 for the Qalandiya International-Gesture in Time exhibition. Laure de Selys currently lives and works between Brussels and Beirut.Event supported by The British Council.