Syrian Photography Exposition

This was my first time at the theater Le Tarmac. Is it a cinema? Is it a small production live theater? Is it a cafe? I really still don't know, but they claim to be a "l’unique théâtre entièrement dédié à la création contemporaine francophone." The theater just kicked off their month-long, ten-part event, Traversées du Monde Arabe, in February with the first event being the Syrian photography exposition, "Pas Si Loin, la Syrie." The theater staff is friendly and it definitely draws an interesting crowd! 

The middle-class socialite crowd who sipped their wine and talked about art was quickly mixed with school children on a class trip—at night. Très bizarre. And then there was me. To be honest this was not my usual scene. Very rarely do I go to a place to look at art. However, this was different—this wasn't just any art. This was art from a people who had seen more destruction than I ever will in my lifetime. This was photography by Syrian photographers with the goal of showing the inventiveness and resilience of the Syrian people. The biggest surprise—it was more of a short film showcase!

The walls of Le Tarmac were ornamented with recent photography from Emad Alhourany, Karam Almasry, Amer Aslhamy, Mohammad Howaish, and a few other Syrian photographers. Photographs littered with rubble, smiles, and lights contrasting with shadows lined the walls. They all showed a side of Syria we often do not see in the news. The side where kids are playing and have yet to be defeated by the war that they were born into—Syria from the eyes of Syrians. 

The photograph lined walls quickly take you into a small theater room with a few red couches and a small screen. What I thought was one short film quickly rolled into the next. Finally, I sat down, intrigued to see what the next film would be about. The first I saw was a dark animated film that quickly rolled into a film called "Saturday Morning Gift" by Bassel Shahade, a young journalist who died as a citizen journalist in Homs, Syria in 2012. It depicts the life of a young boy and what he loves about being woken up by his mom. The morning light blinding his white room as he rolls around in white covers. So much innocence as his mom tickles his feet to wake him. This is all suddenly disturbed when a bomb drops on his house, leaving the audience guessing whether his mom survived. This was one of my favorites of the short films shown that evening because of its depiction of innocence, life and the quite literal impact of war.   

Next was the film Yaman, by Amer Albarzawi. This was tied with the previous for my favorite of the films shown that evening. Yaman is an 11-year-old boy who loves to invent. He creates a great invention in his room that will turn normal tissues into amazing tissues during this four-minute stop-motion film. He says this invention will help him survive—when in reality, he sells tissues on the streets to survive. This film received a standing ovation during the exposition. See more of Amer's award winning short films, such as Fade to Black. 

The remainder of the films were of similar themes. Some were of kids playing and enjoying life, others were commentaries of how kids are being molded to conform to the war. One even had the ABC's, but not as we know them. Instead of "A is for apple" there was  "A is for armed intervention" and "B is for body count." 

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Image credit: Le Tarmac

"Pas Si Loin, la Syrie" was only the first part of the ten-part event, Traversées du Monde Arabe, at the theater Le Tarmac. The event lasts February 21—March 31 with a new part showcasing every few days. While this exposition was free, the future events have a small entrance fee and require reservations that can easily be made online. Within the next few weeks, there will be Lebanese dancing, a Moroccan spectacle and more! See their full schedule of events and RSVP!