Syria
Despite volatility, Syrian artists are painting brighter futures through the haze
After the fall — Just over a full year since the collapse of Assad’s dictatorship, the country’s political and social outlook remains fragile. But a new outlook means a blank slate, and a grassroots arts scene is blossoming. Jessie Williams meets the photographers, painters and sculptors forging a new path.
Written by: Jessie Williams
In a razed Damascus refugee camp, one martial arts club holds its stance
Yarmouk Fight Club — Once the home of 200,000 Palestinians, the Yarmouk Camp was a bustling community and sanctuary, until Assad’s forces launched a deadly siege in 2013. As a small handful of returnees attempt to rebuild from the rubble, a Muay Thai gym is providing space for catharsis.
Written by: Jake Pace Lawrie
Tension and togetherness at a rare Syrian hip-hop open mic night
Latakia levels — After half a century under a bloody dictatorship, Syria has endured massacres on an unprecedented scale in recent times, fuelled by sectarian conflict. In the port city of Latakia, Haydar Daoud and his friends spend their days making rap music, an art form mostly misunderstood by Syrians, yet an essential therapy for disenchanted youth.
Written by: Aubin Eymard
After Assad’s fall, Syria’s musicians rebuild from the rubble
Spaces Between the Beats — Following decades of dictatorship and 14 years of civil war, the country’s classical and creative scenes have an opportunity to build from scratch. Andrei Popviciu speaks to the people hoping for a flourishing new era of art and sound.
Written by: Andrei Popoviciu
The photographer capturing five years of the refugee crisis
A dream of Europe — Since Spring 2015, Jacob Ehrbahn has been documenting the worst refugee crisis in recent history. He is determined to make sure the issue, which is still devastating lives, does not fade from public attention.
Written by: Huck
Moria’s fires expose the stark inhumanity refugees face
Inevitable inferno — The camp’s population has swelled while living conditions have deteriorated under government inaction, making this devastating crisis inevitable.
Written by: Alex King
The photography school for children on the Syrian border
Universal language — As the Director of Sirkhane Darkroom, photographer Serbest Salih teaches young people from vulnerable communities – many of them refugees – how to use cameras to process the world around them.
Written by: Huck
As the world locks down, who will protect refugees?
Where we shelter — Photographer Giles Duley examines the impact COVID-19 will have on refugee camps, where conditions are already barely livable.
Written by: Giles Duley
Yellow Days festival and the power of community
‘It’s love that’s key’ — This year, the grassroots ‘festival without borders’ came to Athens – uniting locals, refugees, and citizens from all over the world.
Written by: Alex King
How this Syrian filmmaker captured war first-hand
For Sama — When civil war broke out in Syria, Waad Al-Kateab picked up the camera – and didn’t put it down. The resulting documentary, co-directed with Edward Watts, humanises a conflict most of us only know through statistics.
Written by: Katie Goh
The Syrian filmmaker who went undercover as an extremist
Risk and resist — In his chilling documentary, Of Fathers And Sons, director Talal Derki paints an intimate portrait of life in a modern Jihadi family.
Written by: Thomas Curry
Thousands gather across the UK to protest Syria airstrikes
‘Stop bombing’ — Yesterday, demonstrations against the UK’s shock intervention in Syria were held across the country. Photographer Theo McInnes and writer Ben Smoke join the crowds in London.
Written by: Ben Smoke
