DAC presents TESTIMONIES OF FIRE: MASSACRES AND MASTERPIECES IN ARAB ART

The Dalloul Artist Collective (DAC), in collaboration with the Ramzi and Saeda Dalloul Art Foundation (DAF), announces Testimonies of Fire: Massacres and Masterpieces in Arab Art, opening Friday, September 12, 2025 (5:00-8:00 PM) at DAC’s headquarters in the Stone Garden Building, Downtown Beirut.

The exhibition is DAC’s first group exhibition and runs September 13 - October 11, 2025, with guided tours on Thursdays and Saturdays (11:00 AM-5:00 PM) by RSVP.

At the exhibition’s core is Dia Azzawi’s tapestry the Sabra and Shatila Massacre, 2018, with its first public presentation. It was commissioned by DAF and woven over four years at Madrid’s Real Fábrica de Tapices by more than thirty artisans, translating the 1982-83 paper polyptych (now in Tate’s collection) into an enduring, portable testimony.

Testimonies of Fire brings together works that confront violence, displacement, and collective memory, through art that turns devastation into witness. The curatorial frame emphasizes material processes (weaving, forging, etching, charring) and scale, as many works are monumental, transforming private grief into public testimony.

Participating artists include: Youssef Abdelke, Ziad Antar, Dia Azzawi, Ayman Baalbaki, Said Baalbaki, Serwan Baran, Everitte Barbee, Jean Boghossian, Tagreed Darghouth, Chawky Frenn, Moustafa Haidar, Inaya Fanis Hodeib, Mohammed Kacimi, Salim Al Kadi, Abdul Rahman Katanani, Sliman Anis Mansour, Mahmoud Obaidi, Faisel Laibi Sahi, Marwan Sahmarani, Asim Abu Shakra, Hady Sy, and Katya Traboulsi, among others.

Rather than illustrating history, the exhibition treats each artwork as a material witness that was forged in heat, tension, and time, inviting viewers to step into a space of remembrance and responsibility.

Event and Visitor Information

• Opening Reception: Friday, September 12, 2025 | 5:00-8:00 PM
  

• Venue: DAC Headquarters, Ground Floor, Stone Garden Building, El Jamarek St, Marfa, Beirut
  

• Exhibition Dates: September 13 - October 11, 2025, 11:00 AM - 6:00 PM
  

• Guided Tours (RSVP): Thursdays & Saturdays, 11:00 AM - 5:00 PM