YARMUK, Syria: Not far from his destroyed home in Syria’s Yarmuk camp for Palestinian refugees, 21-year-old Abdallah Al-Harith dabs bright red paint onto a canvas standing amid the grey ruins.
Last week, he was among 12 young artists to set up their easels in the once-crowded camp turned Damascus suburb, now largely abandoned after seven years of civil war.
Equipped with paint brushes and pencils, they set out to translate suffering into art in a neighborhood ravaged by years of bombardment and siege.
“We’re bringing back life to a dark place,” said Harith, who fled Yarmuk several years ago, but returned after the regime ousted Daesh group jihadists in May.
“I had such a lump in my throat when I first came back to the camp. At first I couldn’t draw anything,” said the fine arts student.
“But then I realized that any glimpse of life amid all this death was a victory,” he said, gesturing toward the battered buildings around him.
He and his peers stood sweeping paint across their canvases while the gentle melody of an oud — a Middle Eastern lute — was broadcast across the smashed concrete. Harith painted an image of a small boy emerging from the ground, holding a bright red apple.
“It’s supposed to represent new life,” Harith said. 
“I actually saw something like this once: children with apples playing again on what had been fighting ground.”
Before the war, Yarmuk was home to around 160,000 people, the United Nations says.
Set up in 1957 to house Palestinian refugees, over the decades it became a crowded district that was eventually swallowed up by Damascus.
But today it lies almost abandoned. Around 140,000 residents fled clashes between the regime and rebels in 2012, leaving the rest to face severe food shortages under government encirclement. In 2014, a harrowing photograph of gaunt-looking residents massing between ravaged buildings to receive handouts caused global outrage.
Earlier this year, fighting between loyalists and jihadists displaced most of the remaining residents, according to the United Nations’ agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA.
President Bashar Assad’s troops retook control in May, ousting IS fighters from their last urban stronghold on the outskirts of the capital.
In late May, UNRWA said an immediate return of residents was unlikely due to extensive damage to key infrastructure such as the water and power networks.
Visiting the camp last month, UNRWA commissioner-general Pierre Krahenbuhl said he had rarely seen such damage.
“The scale of the destruction in Yarmuk compares to very little else that I have seen in many years of humanitarian work in conflict zones,” he said.
On Saturday, the work of the young artists was displayed at the entrance of the Yarmuk camp, with a small crowd making the trip to see it.
Painter Hinaya Kebabi depicted a young boy with a missing eye, holding up a drawing of another eye to conceal his wound, the 22-year-old explained.
“One day, I hope people will come back here to color, not rubble,” she said.
One painting depicted streams of red running down a dark building.
In another, an emaciated man was curled up naked in the foetal position.
After the images were shared online, several Internet users slammed the project as provocative.
“The camp is neither romantic nor a place for drawing,” 28-year-old Abeer Abassiyeh said, as most former residents remain unable to return to their homes.
But Mohammed Jalbout, one of the organizers who hails from the Palestinian camp, defended the project.
“We all have homes here. I haven’t been back to mine or been able to inspect it,” he said.
But, he said, “at least through art, we’re trying to breathe a little life back into this place.”
In Syria’s Yarmuk, artists paint amid the ruins
In Syria’s Yarmuk, artists paint amid the ruins
- Around 140,000 residents fled clashes between the regime and rebels in 2012, leaving the rest to face severe food shortages under government encirclement
- Set up in 1957 to house Palestinian refugees, over the decades it became a crowded district that was eventually swallowed up by Damascus
Exhibition on animal rights in Athens spotlights Arab artists
ATHENS: An art exhibition at EMST, the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Athens, ponders a challenging yet crucial question: What are the rights of animals?
The exhibition, “Why Look at Animals? A Case for the Rights of Non-Human Lives,” curated by EMST’s artistic director Katerina Gregos, is among the most ambitious staged by a public institution on animal ethics at a time when wars rage around the world and basic human rights are in crisis.
The show presents more than 200 works by 60 contemporary artists from four continents and runs until Jan. 7, 2026.
Evocatively curated, with works unfolding in the various rooms of the museum in dialogue with the visitor and each other, the various depictions of animals prompt both philosophical and political questions.
The show evokes questions on the nature of humanity, the emotional intelligence of animals and how to confront systems of political domination, such as colonialism and rampant industrialization, that have restricted humans and animals.
From the Arab world, Egyptian artist Nabil Boutros has created “Celebrities,” a moving series of studio portraits of lambs, ewes and rams. Each image depicts not only their aesthetic beauty but seemingly also their emotional state.
“I wanted to talk about the human condition through these works,” Boutros told Arab News. “These first portraits of (these animals) show they are different. They have different races, different attitudes and different characters, but we never look at them.”
“What is our relationship with animals? Is it just about food, about slaughtering?” he asked. “We are all part of this world and there is a whole organic structure that connects us that has been forgotten.”
Boutros’ touching portraits, exalting the personality and individuality of each animal, similar to traditional human portraiture, show us a rarely encountered world of animals and their emotional depth.
“They’re very expressive,” said Boutros, when discussing the moments he photographed them. “We imagine that they don’t have feelings, but that is not true.”
Algerian artist Oussama Tabti’s “Homo-Carduelis” is an installation that covers an entire wall of empty birdcages, each encompassing a speaker playing a birdsong created by human voices to imitate that of birds.
The work strives to show the connection between animals and humans. “The idea for the work came from the goldfinch, an appreciated bird in Algeria,” Tabti told Arab News.
“Born and raised in Algeria, the goldfinch was always in our daily soundscape.
“My work talks about the relation between the bird and the human because people appreciate (the goldfinch) and have it as a pet. They keep the bird in a cage and sometimes even go for a walk with it.”
Tabti finds the relationship at times “awkward and strange.” He thinks that Algerians at times “identify themselves in the birds.”
He added: “The work goes beyond the state of Algeria to reflect on the state of the human condition. Each one of us is in our own cage; it could be work, the environment or even one’s identity.
“I thought the bird in a cage would be a good metaphor for what we are today as human beings. We human beings are able to accomplish a lot but we live in a society that does not let us be completely autonomous.”
“For this installation,” said Tabti, “it was important for me that we can hear the birds, imitated by human beings, so it is like a human in a cage.”
Imaan Hammam continues to highlight Arab culture
DUBAI: Dutch Moroccan Egyptian model Imaan Hammam touched down in Cairo this week for an undisclosed photoshoot and shared highlights from the trip on social media, set to music by the late Egyptian singer Abdel Halim Hafiz.
Posting to her 1.7 million Instagram followers, Hammam offered a visual diary of her stay, capturing a mix of street scenes, style moments and local ambiance.
The carousel opened with a mirror selfie in an elevator, where she wears a high-waisted printed maxi skirt paired with a black fitted top. In another shot, she appears in a more laid-back look featuring camouflage trousers, a white tank top, a grey hoodie and yellow sneakers.
She also shared a short video that captures her tuk-tuk ride through a narrow alley, followed by snapshots of Cairo’s street life, including a local bookstore and a rooftop view of a mosque at sunset.
Hammam’s Cairo visit reflects a growing interest in reconnecting with her roots, something that also drives her latest passion project, Ayni.
Launched earlier this year, Ayni is an archival platform dedicated to preserving and celebrating Arab artistic expression through Hammam’s perspective.
In a video she shared on the Ayni’s Instagram account, she said: “For me, its always been so much deeper than just fashion. It is about staying connected to my roots, telling stories that move me and shining a light on the voices that need to be heard.”
She said her hope for Ayni is for it to grow beyond a personal vision and become a “real community.”
Hammam is one of the most in-demand models in the industry. She was scouted in Amsterdam’s Centraal Station before making her catwalk debut in 2013 by walking in Jean Paul Gaultier’s couture show.
Hammam has appeared on the runway for leading fashion houses such as Burberry, Fendi, Prada, Bottega Veneta, Marc Jacobs, Moschino, Balenciaga and Carolina Herrera, to name a few, and starred in international campaigns for DKNY, Celine, Chanel, Versace, Givenchy, Giorgio Armani, Tiffany & Co. and others.
Global sculptures at open-air museum in historic Jeddah
- The sculptures form a dynamic dialogue between the past and present, blending the site’s heritage with the language of contemporary art
JEDDAH: As part of a broader effort to revive the region’s visual identity through art, Al-Arbaeen Lake in historic Jeddah has been transformed into an open-air gallery featuring a curated collection of sculptures by international artists.
Led by the Ministry of Culture in cooperation with Jeddah Municipality, the initiative features 14 world-class artworks integrated into the city’s visual landscape, Saudi Press Agency reported.
The sculptures form a dynamic dialogue between the past and present, blending the site’s heritage with the language of contemporary art.
Notable works on display include “The Illusion of the Second Cube” by Hungarian-French artist Victor Vasarely; “Rouge” and “Flexibility of Balance” by Alexander Calder; “Circular Mass” by Arnaldo Pomodoro; “The Bird” by Spanish sculptor Joan Miro; and “Giving and Receiving Love” by Lorenzo Quinn — a powerful piece that reflects human values through striking aluminium forms.
FASTFACTS
• Led by the Ministry of Culture in cooperation with Jeddah Municipality, the urban art initiative features 14 world-class artworks integrated into the city’s visual landscape.
• Notable works on display include ‘The Illusion of the Second Cube’ by Hungarian-French artist Victor Vasarely and ‘Giving and Receiving Love’ by Lorenzo Quinn.
The installations are part of a wider artistic movement that reimagines public spaces as platforms for cultural engagement.
By transforming urban environments into art experiences, the project invites both residents and visitors to explore the intersection of architectural heritage and modern creativity.
It underscores the growing role of art in shaping urban identity and fostering public appreciation for visual beauty in shared spaces of the Kingdom.
Em Sherif Art Foundation reimagines global restaurants as cultural hubs
DUBAI: With 24 outposts around the world, the minds behind Lebanese restaurant Em Sherif are keenly aware of their responsibility when it comes to sharing the country’s culinary culture with international audiences.
Now, they are taking things one step further with the launch of the Em Sherif Art Foundation that aims to provide increased visibility for artists through restaurants — in Doha, Monaco, London, Paris and Dubai, among other cities — which are being reimagined as cultural hubs.
Earlier this year, the Em Sherif Cafe in Paris showcased the work of Lebanese photographer Ziad Antar, and part of the initiative sees diners at all Em Sherif locations presented with three menus — a food menu, a drinks menu and an art menu — inviting guests to engage with the evolving story of contemporary Lebanese art.
Em Sherif CEO and co-founder of the art foundation, Dani Chakour, spoke to Arab News about the cultural initiative.
“The art menu is not intended for commercial or financial purposes. Rather, it serves as a curated catalogue that showcases the artworks currently on display,” he said.
The decision to focus exclusively on Lebanese artists was intentional, Chakour added.
“In Lebanon, it is often the private sector that drives meaningful cultural and artistic initiatives, as government support for the arts remains limited. Through this foundation, we aim to be an added value for our artists, helping them gain the visibility and recognition they deserve on a global scale.
“We need active public-sector involvement: We need more art fairs, modern infrastructure, supportive tariffs and dedicated museums. Without this foundational support, our artists will continue to be overlooked, despite their remarkable talent,” he said.
Chakour, who has a personal collection of more than 600 artworks, spotlighted celebrated names in the international art industry who he says benefited from working abroad.
“Huguette Caland, Gibran Khalil Gibran, Etel Adnan, Mona Hatoum, Walid Raad, Yvette Ashkar, Amin Maalouf, they are some of Lebanon’s most celebrated names. But what do they all have in common? They each spent the majority of their careers abroad, in environments that offered the right ecosystems … this is not a reflection of a lack of talent in Lebanon. On the contrary, it’s a reflection of what’s missing structurally; the institutional support, the infrastructure, the public funding, the museums, the cultural policies and the global exposure.
“At Em Sherif Art Foundation, we’re driven by a mission to help bridge that gap — to create opportunities within and beyond Lebanon so that our artists don’t need to leave home in order to rise,” Chakour said, noting that showcases by artists Christine Safa, Willy Aractengi, Ayman Baalbaki, Hussein Madi and Bibi Zogbe will be hosted in the coming months.
Jeddah exhibition gives internet cafes an artistic reboot
- Local artists revive communal, quirky, deeply human qualities of early web era
JEDDAH: Internet cafes in Jeddah were once popular spots with pay-by-the-hour internet access; they have now provided the inspiration for the city’s latest exhibition.
In a collaboration between Kham Space and Estiraha, 17 artists and collectives have had their work on display at “Internet Cafe,” an eight-day exhibition which explored the concept of connection and intimacy in the digital age.
Abeer Sultan, who curated the exhibition alongside Mbarak Madhi and Fai Ahmed, spoke to Arab News about the early process in contemplating the theme.
The idea for the exhibition, which concluded on Saturday, stemmed from an exasperation over incessant scrolling, and the deluge of information that has usurped our daily lives.
HIGHLIGHTS
• The idea for the Jeddah exhibition stemmed from an exasperation over incessant scrolling, and the deluge of information that has usurped our daily lives.
• Some of the works were meant to act as ‘hyperlinks’ to connect ideas, as well as creating a communal space and mimicking the social space of a cafe.
She said: “We wanted to do something that is about us now, and maybe the future as well; not only going back to things for nostalgia or the good old days, as they say.
“Maybe it has something that we can use today, especially now that there’s a movement of people trying to slow down, using dumbified devices throughout the internet.”
Instead of creating a literal internet cafe, the curators focused more on the nuances a cybercafe used to have.
Their approach to the space was categorized into three themes: “Disconnected Understanding, Linked Source,” “In the Shadow of a Doubt, Light My Screen,” and “Whirling Algorithms of a Distant Dream.”
Artist Zahiyah Alraddadi, who usually paints works focusing on the significance of the mundane, took oil to canvas to paint “Closed Eyes Under a Sunny Sky I” and “Familiar Features.”
Her work feels meditative and was intended to slow visitors down as they walked through the space — much like the feel of a buffering screen page.
Some of the works were meant to act as “hyperlinks” to connect ideas, as well as creating a communal space and mimicking the social space of a cafe.
Anhar Salem’s work “After Now” was a curtain imprinted with thumbnails of YouTube videos. The artist conducted a survey asking people between the ages of 18 and 40 to share their YouTube video recommendations, making up a curtain of information overload.
Next to that, Tara O‛Conal’s video installation was a film sequence — but the catch is, nothing really happened. The film continued to load, glitch, and reload, perhaps suggesting commentary on our constant yearning for contact.
“Compared to Anhar’s work, (Tara’s) feels like a pond, in a way, to look at,” Sultan said.
Some works were inspired by computer graphics. Asaad Badawi paid tribute to early programmer culture via telephone-book-inspired art, and his father, who is a programmer.
Studio bin Hattan, which is led by artist Elham Dawsari, displayed “Cultural Override,” derived from her father’s archives from the 1980s. Madhawi Al-Gwaiz paints in a style that echoes digital graphics from the early 2000s.
Others took a more distanced approach. ThirdSpace’s “Untitled Table” was a physical object, but the research behind it was about keyboards that then shifted to Hijazi architecture, drawing on the iconography and architectural languages across the history of the region.
Hayfa Al-Gwaiz’s “Long Distance” was a painted form of facetime video calls. The work explored digital intimacy by showcasing not the callers’ faces, but the ceilings above them — a scene that’s familiar to anyone who has taken up a long-winded video call with a loved one and set down the phone to cater to life’s more immediate demands.
While the exhibition tackled the digital boom personified through cybercafes, it notably avoided artificial intelligence.
Sultan explained: “It is the idea of being fast and efficient, which is what we are resisting with AI … It’s dominating the internet in a weird way, and we wanted a space where people customized things manually, going back to montadayat (domains) where people had to do things by themselves. There’s no template.”
The last piece was by Ahaad Alamoudi, and “Land of Dreams” took a humorous approach to directing audiences to their dreams. As you walked toward the work, in an outdoor area outside the confines of the exhibition space, visitors were met with vinyl boards of the iconic Emirati singer Ahlam.
Sultan said: “The work accentuates the fact that the dream land is a subjective experience or idea, and everyone would have their own imagination of what that is, whether it's Ahlam or something else.”
The “Internet Cafe” was a love letter to a new digital age — one that is sustainable, communal, and deliberately slow.
“This is our way of keeping in touch with other people. An exhibition space is also a space where people meet, even if it’s for a moment, to have these conversations together, which is really important,” Sultan said.
