Akram Zaatari

Akram Zaatari (born 1966) is a Lebanese filmmaker, photographer, archival artist and curator. In 1997, he co-founded the Arab Image Foundation with photographers Fouad Elkoury, and Samer Mohdad. His work is largely based on collecting, studying and archiving the photographic history of the Arab World. ^[1]

Zaatari was selected to represent Lebanon at the 2013 Venice Biennale by Sam Bardaouil and Till Fellrath, curators for the Lebanese Pavilion. ^[2]

Early life

Zaatari was born in Sidon, Lebanon. ^[1]

Work

He has been exploring issues pertinent to post-war Lebanon. He investigates the way television mediates territorial conflicts and wars, and is particularly interested in logic of religious and national resistance movements, and the circulation and production of images in the context of today's geographic division in the Middle East. ^[3] His work has been widely exhibited worldwide in biennales and venues such as the Centre Pompidou ^[4] and is in the permanent collection of museums such as Tate Modern ^[5] and the Thyssen Bornemisza Contemporary. ^[6]

Filmography

• Majnounak (Crazy of You), 1997 ^[7]
• Red Chewing Gum, 2000 ^[8]
• Her + Him VAN LEO, 2001 ^[9]
• How I love you, 2001 ^[10]
• This Day (al yaoum), 2003 ^[11]
• In this house, 2005 ^[12]
• Tomorrow Everything Will Be Alright, 2010 ^[13]
• On Photography People and Modern Times, 2010 ^[14]
• Letter to a Refusing Pilot, 2013 ^[15]

Awards

• Grand Prize of the 17th International Contemporary Art Festival SESC_Videobrasil in São Paulo (2011)

Publications

• The Vehicle. Picturing moments of transition in a modernizing society (Arab Image Foundation and Mind the Gap, 1999)
• Mapping Sitting (Arab Image Foundation and Mind the Gap, 2002)
• Hashem el Madani: Studio Practices (Arab Image Foundation, Mind the Gap and the Photographers' Gallery, 2004)
• Hashem el Madani: Promenades (Arab Image Foundation and Mind the Gap, 2007)
• Earth of Endless Secrets (Portikus and Beirut Art Center, 2010)
• Against Photography (Kaph Books and MACBA, 2018) ^[16]
• Building Index. Rifat Chadirji , edited by Akram Zaatari and Mark Wasiuta (Arab Image Foundation and Kaph Books, 2018) ^[17]

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

• Akram Zaatari. Objects of Study, Galerie Sfeir Semler, Hamburg, 2007 ^[18]
• Earth of Endless Secrets. Writing for a Posterior Time, Beirut Art Center, 2009 ^[19]
• Akram Zaatari. Nature Morte, Baltic Mill, 2009 ^[20]
• Akram Zaatari Composition for Two Wings, Oslo, Kunstnernes Hus, 2011 ^[21]
• Liverpool Biennial Spotlight Akram Zaatari, Liverpool Biennial, 2012 ^[22]
• This Day at Ten, Le Magasin-Cnac, Grenoble, 2012 ^[23]
• Akram Zaatari, Letter to a refusing pilot, Lebanese Pavilion, Arsenale, 55. Venice Biennial, Venice, Italy, 2013
• Akram Zaatari, All Is Well, Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Queens University, Kingston, ON, 2013–2014 ^[24]
• Akram Zaatari, Unfolding, Moderna Museet, Stockholm, 2015 ^[25]
• Akram Zaatari, Against Photography. An Annoted History of the Image Arab Foundation, MACBA, Barcelona, 2017 ^[26]
• Akram Zaatari. The Third Window, Sfeir Semler Gallery, Beirut 2018 ^[27]

Group exhibitions

• Documenta (13), Kassel, 2012 ^[28]
• Across Boundaries. Focus on Lebanese Photography, curated by Tarek Nahas, Beirut Art Fair 2018 ^[29]
• In 2023, Akram Zaatari participated in BIENALSUR (Bienal Internacional de Arte Contemporáneo del Sur), presenting work in the exhibition Modos de desvanecimiento at the Sursock Museum in Beirut, Lebanon. ^[30]

References

1. "Galerie Sfeir Semler". Galerie Sfeir Semler. Archived from the original on 28 March 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2012.
2. "Akram Zaatari represents Lebanon at Venice". Biennial Foundation. 20 October 2012. Archived from the original on 2013-04-30. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
3. "Le Journal des Laboratoires: Akram Zaatari". Les Laboratoires. Retrieved 20 January 2012.
4. "Centre Pompidou – Akram Zaatari". Centre Pompidou. 2007. Archived from the original on 12 May 2010. Retrieved 20 January 2012.
5. "tate Collection – Akram Zaatari". Tate Modern. Retrieved 20 January 2012.
6. "Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary". Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary. Archived from the original on 1 November 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2012.
7. "Majnounak (Crazy of You) Akram Zaatari". Video Data Bank. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
8. "Red Chewing Gum Akram Zaatari". Video Data Bank. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
9. "Her + Him VAN LEO Akram Zaatari". Video Data Bank. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
10. "How I love you Akram Zaatari". Video Data Bank. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
11. "This Day (al yaoum) Akram Zaatari". Video Data Bank. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
12. "In this house Akram Zaatari". Video Data Bank. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
13. Tamar Zmora. "Tomorrow Everything Will Be Alright Akram Zaatari". ArtAsiaPacific. Retrieved 13 June 2015.
14. "Akram Zaatari: On Photography People and Modern Times". Thomas Dane Gallery. 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2015.
15. "Akram Zaatari Letter to a Refusing Pilot". e-flux. 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2015.
16. "Against Photography". Kaph Books. 2018. Retrieved 10 October 2019.
17. "Building Index". Les presses du réel. 2018. Retrieved 10 October 2019.
18. "Akram Zaatari". artnews.org. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
19. "Earth of Endless Secrets. Writing for a Posterior Time". Beirut Art Center. 2009. Archived from the original on 10 May 2013. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
20. "Akram Zaatari < detail < exhibitions < What's on < Baltic". Baltic Mill. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
21. "Oslo Contemporary Art Exhibition 2011: Akram Zaatari. Composition for Two Wings". e-flux. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
22. "Liverpool Biennial 2012 spotlight on Akram Zaatari". Liverpool Biennial. Archived from the original on 14 October 2012. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
23. "" Aujourd'hui à 10 ans / This day at ten " exposition de Akram Zaatari au MAGASIN". Isere Culture. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
24. "Agnes Etherington Art Centre www.aeac.ca". www.aeac.ca. Archived from the original on 2014-02-27.
25. "Exhibitions arkiv".
26. "Exhibition - Akram Zaatari | MACBA Museum of Contemporary Art of Barcelona".
27. "The Third Window". Artforum. 2018. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
28. "dOCUMENTA (13)". Documenta. Archived from the original on 6 March 2015. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
29. "Across Boundaries. Focus on Lebanese Photography" (PDF). Rania Matar website. 2018. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
30. "Modos de desvanecimiento". BIENALSUR. 2023. Retrieved 24 June 2025.

External links

• Akram Zaatari at Galerie Sfeir Semler, Hamburg and Beirut
• Akram Zaatari, Interview Revista Código
• Akram Zaatari at Universes in Universe
• Akram Zaatari at IMDb
• Akram Zaatari profile at Kadist Art Foundation
• Akram Zaatari at in the collection of The Museum of Modern Art
• Projects 100: Akram Zaatari at The Museum of Modern Art