Beirut's Archive Artists: Walid Raad and Akram Zaatari

Laure Guirguis examines the work of two Lebanese artists, Walid Raad (Atlas Group) and Akram Zaatari, who explore archives and memory in postwar Beirut. Between 1990 and 2006, Beirut saw a cultural renaissance despite destruction. Artists critically engaged with the reconstruction led by Solidere and Rafiq Hariri, addressing public space, memory, and politics. Raad's Atlas Group, founded in 1999, produces and studies documents on Lebanon's contemporary history, questioning the truth value of archives through works like 'My Neck Is Thinner than a Hair' and 'Missing Lebanese Wars.' Zaatari, a member of the Arab Image Foundation, collects photographs from the Middle East (1860-1970) and creates videos such as 'This Day' and 'In this House.' Both artists use digital media to reanimate archives, blending art and documentation. The Sfeir-Semler Gallery opened in Beirut in January 2005, and the third Ashkal Alwan forum (Home Works III) took place in November 2005. The July 2006 war disrupted but did not halt cultural production, with films uploaded to sites like 'cinesoumoud' and exhibitions such as 'Moving Homes' at Sfeir-Semler. Raad and Zaatari's practices redefine the relationship between art and document, addressing political and aesthetic questions about memory, technology, and history.