Ad Achkar (born August 17, 1988, in rural

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

, Lebanon) is a Lebanese

fine-art photographer Fine-art photography is photography created in line with the vision of the photographer as artist, using photography as a medium for creative expression. The goal of fine-art photography is to express an idea, a message, or an emotion. This stand ...

and artist. In 2010, Achkar gained a Bachelor of Arts in photography, and achieved the highest ranking in the history of

Université Saint-Esprit de Kaslik The Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (french: Université Saint-Esprit de Kaslik (USEK); ar, جامعة الرّوح القدس – الكسليك, ''Jāmiʿah al-Rūḥ al-Quddus – al-Kaslīk''), is a private, not-for-profit Catholic univer ...

– USEK,

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

for his senior project ''God Bless Our Home''. In 2015, Achkar moved to Berlin where he completed a Masters of Arts and Design in Media Spaces in 2017 at the

University of Applied Sciences Europe The University of Europe for Applied Sciences, shortened as UE, is a private, for-profit university in Germany with its main campus and administrative headquarters in Iserlohn and further campuses in Berlin, Potsdam, Hanover and Hamburg. It was ...

– UE, Germany. Following an open call in April 2011 for a competition of young Arabic photographers, Achkar joined the competition together with 150 other emerging photographers. Fifteen photographers were chosen to be part of an exhibition in

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

. The Dubai jury ranked Ad Achkar first place in late 2011. Along with reading and writing, Achkar indulged himself with the use of diverse mediums and materials, varying from photography, installations, collages, and media arts. He has a wide range of interests, from the comprehension of humanity,

nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physics, physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomenon, phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. ...

, and existence, to the relation between humans and nature and the resulting problems. In his photographic installations, ''God Bless Our Home'', waste vitalizing abandoned houses evoke associations with the Arte Povera, all installed objects are recycled and reused materials. Inspired by

Deleuze Gilles Louis René Deleuze ( , ; 18 January 1925 – 4 November 1995) was a French philosopher who, from the early 1950s until his death in 1995, wrote on philosophy, literature, film, and fine art. His most popular works were the two volu ...

and Guattari, Achkar developed ''BwO/CsO 2017'', a kinetic machine composed of a colorless silicon skin that folds into its center and stretches itself apart. The installation creates a horizon line that becomes diagonal in-depth and reflects a haptic landscape that is constantly composing itself. The skin stretches itself apart, reflects philosophical thresholds of the existence, and the

Body without Organs The body without organs (or BwO; French: or ) is a philosophical concept used in the work of French philosophers Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari. The term was first used by French writer Antonin Artaud in his 1947 play ''To Have Done With t ...

broadens one's perception and surpasses the horizon. Through abstraction, Achkar left 'the truth' to unravel the mind and disappear within the understanding of humanity and existence.

Exhibitions

Visitors-discussion-2-images-from-behind the sea

Group exhibitions

*2019 PhotoPlace Gallery, Altered Realities, Vermont, US: ''The Green Eraser'' (Ras El Maten). *2017 Artscoops, Le Yacht Club, Zaituna Bay, Beirut, Lebanon: ''ISIS 1947''; Original

Collage Collage (, from the french: coller, "to glue" or "to stick together";) is a technique of art creation, primarily used in the visual arts, but in music too, by which art results from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole. ...

of ‘Al Sayyad’ newspaper

947 Year 947 ( CMXLVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Summer – A Hungarian army led by Grand Prince Taksony campaigns in Italy, heading ...

*2017 Lab. 30, Kulturhaus Abraxas, Augsburg, Germany: ''Space Box''. *2016

Ars Electronica Ars Electronica Linz GmbH is an Austrian cultural, educational and scientific institute active in the field of new media art, founded in Linz in 1979. It is based at the Ars Electronica Center (AEC), which houses the Museum of the Future, in the ...

, Linz, Austria: ''Space Box''. *2016

Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research The Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK, German: ''Potsdam-Institut für Klimafolgenforschung'') is a German government-funded research institute addressing crucial scientific questions in the fields of global change, climate imp ...

, Potsdam, Germany: Forschungsneubau, Megatrends 2100, Data visualization, ''Heavy Happiness''. *2016 Academie Lounge, Mixed Realities, Berlin, Germany: ''Trivision/Division''. *2010 Festival of Lebanese Art Books, Le Palais de l’Unesco, Beirut, Lebanon: ''God Bless Our Home''. *2011 Ayyam Gallery, Dubai, The United Arab Emirates: ''God Bless Our Home''. *2012 SNAP!, Downtown Orlando, Florida, US: ''Behind the Sea''.

Solo exhibitions

* 2011 ''God Bless Our Home'' exhibited at ''De Prague'', Hamra, Beirut, Lebanon. * 2014 ''One with Nature'', a

Land Art Land art, variously known as Earth art, environmental art, and Earthworks, is an art movement that emerged in the 1960s and 1970s, largely associated with Great Britain and the United StatesArt in the modern era: A guide to styles, schools, & mov ...

photography installation of Achkar's self-portraits at Nahr El Kalb, near Beirut, Lebanon, 04.Sep – 09.Sep. 2014, see an interview on MTV Lebanon at YouTube, some photos of the installation are exhibited at

See.me See.me (founded as 'Artists Wanted' in 2007) was an American web-based arts organization originally based in Long Island City, Queens, in New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populou ...

and published in the 5th Annual Exposure Award.

References

;Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Achkar, Ad 1988 births Lebanese photographers Living people Fine art photographers