Photographic Series, Mixed Media, 35×35 cm, 2023
This work follows an intelligence officer standing at a high vantage point in Riyad al-Solh Square in downtown Beirut during the protest movements of 2019–2020. He stood in the same spot for hours and hours. Over time, it became clear to me that it was impossible he was actually filming all that time with that camera.
The work raises questions about the meaning of the image, or the act of holding a camera as a tool of intimidation, a symbol of authority used to impose control and instill fear. But it also speaks to a sense of impotence: the officer holding this old camera, pretending or performing as if he’s filming for nearly six hours, becomes a powerful symbol of the regime’s incapacity—even in its use of imagery or its attempts to maintain the illusion of power.
This work also explores the sense of powerlessness felt by the protesters, their inability to bring about real change in the country. Through a fictionalized narrative between the artist and the intelligence officer, the piece attempts to question the state’s repressive apparatus and surveillance techniques.
Is there a room somewhere in the depths of the intelligence headquarters where all faces are revealed and identified? That’s assuming the camera was actually recording the protest.
Did the intelligence officer see the artist filming him? In that case, did the artist’s face also become exposed, recognized and known?
Part of Serotonin, Benzine, and a Renegade Body, Solo Show, Marfa Gallery
