By Medha Imam
WASHINGTON— From the chants in Homs to the songs of Hama, the Syrian American Council celebrated art and creativity as critical components in igniting the Syrian revolution at a dinner commemorating its fourth anniversary.
Various artists from the United States and Syria showcased their protest art at the event sponsored by the Syrian American Council.
Artist Kinda Hibrawi gained worldwide acclaim for her paintings of refugee children imposed over tweets composed during massacres in Syria in her “Syria Twitter Portraits.”
“It is a deeply moving and very profound expression of what you have suffered as a community and what your relatives and friends have suffered in Syria,” said Anne Patterson—assistant secretary of state for near Eastern affairs—in her keynote address on Friday.
During the chemical weapons massacre on the suburban district of Ghouta, Kibrawi remembers watching the body count rise as she tracked the attack live over Twitter. She said the live-tweets of the revolution marked the “black history” of Syria.
Akram Abu Alfoz—an artists who is still in Syria—sent pictures of his collection titled, “Painting on Death,” in which he painted intricate designs onto artillery casings and shrapnel left over from the conflict.
Artist Tammam Azzam projected classic masterpieces over images of destruction from the war in his “Syrian Museum” series.
