Hrair Sarkissian

Unfinished

13 March - 5 April, 2008

Biography      View Work           News   Back

  BIOGRAPHY
 

Hrair Sarkissian was born in 1973 in Damascus, Syria. He lives and works in London, UK. Hrair Sarkissian is represented by Kalfayan Galleries, Athens – Thessaloniki.
 
EDUCATION
2008-2010
BFA in Photography, Gerrit Rietveld Academie, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
2003-2004
Student (resident) in the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de la Photographie, Arles, France.
 
AWARD
2013
Abraaj Group Art Prize 2013.
 
UPCOMING EXHIBITIONS
2014
“Conflict, Time, Photography”, TATE Modern, London, UK.
2015
“Conflict, Time, Photography”, Museum Folkwang, Essen & Staaltiche Kunstsammlungen, Dresden, Germany.
 
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2013
“Unexposed”, Kalfayan Galleries, Athens, Greece.
Solo Show, Art Brussels, Kalfayan Galleries, Brussels, Belgium.
Darat Al Funun – The Khalid Shoman Foundation, Amman, Jordan.
2011
“istory”, SALT Beyoglu, Istanbul, Turkey. 
Podbielski Contemporary, Berlin, Germany.
2010
“Underground”, Kalfayan Galleries, Athens, Greece.
“Execution Squares”, PhotoBiennale 2010 – 21st International Photography Meeting. Venue: Genti Koule. Organised by the Museum of Photography of Thessaloniki. Exhibition held in collaboration with Kalfayan Galleries.
Silvia Geddes, Rome, Italy.
2008
“Unfinished”, Kalfayan Galleries, Athens, Greece.
2007
“Unfinished - Hrair Sarkissian”, parallel event to “Photosynkyria” (organized by the Museum of Photography of Thessaloniki) and the 1st Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art (organised by the State Museum of Contemporary Art of Thessaloniki).
1998
French Institute for Arab Studies, Damascus, Syria.
 
GROUP EXHIBITIONS (SELECTED)
2014
“The Space Between”, One Athens, Greece.
“Sinus Arabicus” (curated by Sheikha Hoor Al-Quasimi), Former factory 4711 (Barthonia Showroom), Cologne, Germany.
“Here and Elsewhere”, New Museum, New York, USA.
“Aliénés de tous les pays, unissons-nous!”, National Museum of Fine Arts of Quebec, Canada.
2013
“HIWAR - Conversations in Amman”, Darat Al Funun – The Khalid Shoman Foundation, Amman, Jordan.
“Facing History: Leon Golub & Hrair Sarkissian”, Collection Displays, TATE Modern, London, UK.
“Death of a Cameraman” (curated by Martin Waldmeier), Apexart, New York, USA.
“Selection of works from SAF Collection on display in SAF Art Spaces”, Sharjah Art Foundation, Sharjah, UAE.
"Panorámica. Paisajes 2013-1969", Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes, Mexico City, Mexico.
The Abraaj Group show (curator: Murtaza Vali), Art Dubai, Kalfayan Galleries, Dubai, UAE.
“Power!Photos!Freedom!”, FoMu - FotoMuseum, Antwerp, Belgium.
 
“Ici, Ailleurs” (curator: Juliette Laffon), MuCEM - Musée des Civilisations de l¢Europe et de la Mediterranée, Marseille-Provence 2013 - European Capital of Culture, Marseille, France.
2012
“Encounter. The Royal Academy in the Middle East”, Cultural Village, Katara, Qatar.
7th Asia Pacific Triennal of Contemporary Art (APT7), Gallery of Modern Art, Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane, Australia.
2nd Mardin Biennial: “Double Take” (curators: Paolo Colombo and Lora Sariaslan), Turkey.
“Arab Express” (curator: Ken Kondo), Mori Art Museum, Tokyo, Japan.
“Lines of Control”, Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University, Ithaca, USA.
“Drift - an exploration of urban & suburban landscapes”, Sharjah Art Foundation, Collections Building, Sharjah, UAE.
2011
“Facing Mirrors”, Thessaloniki Museum of Photography, Greece.
3rd Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art: “A Rock and a Hard Place”, Greece. Organised by the State Museum of Contemporary Art. Curators: Paolo Colombo, Marina Fokidis, Mahita El Bacha.
“Out of Place” (curators: Kasia Redzisz and Ala¢ Younis), a travelling exhibition and a collaboration between Tate Modern (London, UK) and Darat al Funun - The Khalid Shoman Foundation (Amman, Jordan).
Sharjah Biennial 10: “Plot for a Biennial” (curators: Suzanne Cotter and Rasha Salti. Associate curator: Haig Aivazian)
2010
“Breaking News: Contemporary Photography from the Middle East and Africa”, Modena Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Modena, Italy (presentation of recent acquisitions of the Foundation¢s collection).
“Disorientation II” (curator: Jack Persekian), Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi, UAE.
11th International Istanbul Biennial (curator: WHW). Hrair Sarkissian presented his new photographic series titled ¡Execution Squares¢.
2009
“Treasures of Wisdom” (Aikaterini Gegisian, Antonis Donef, Hrair Sarkissian & Panos Tsagaris). Exhibition presented by Kalfayan Galleries as part of ReMap2, an international art programme parallel to the 2nd Athens Biennial.
2008
“Visual Arts in Greece III”, State Museum of Contemporary Art, Thessaloniki, Greece.
“New Ends, Old Beginnings” (curator: November Paynter), The Bluecoat Gallery, Liverpool, UK.
“Constructio”, Galeria Antonio De Barnola, Barcelona, Spain.
2007
“Terres de Rêves”, organised by the Association Ecume, Cartuja, Seville, Spain.
2005
Exhibition at the festival “Meeting Points”, organised by the ¡Young Arab Theatre Fund¢, Amman, Jordan and Damascus, Syria.
2004
“Voices Off”, Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie d¢Arles, France.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          
May 2003 – May 2002 – June 2001
“Journées de la photographie”, Damascus, Syria.
2003
Exhibition with Xavier Zimmermann, Centre d¢Art le Creux de l¢enfer, Thiers, France.
2001
International Photographic Gathering, Aleppo, Syria.
2000
International Photographic Gathering, Aleppo, Syria.
 
LECTURES AND SEMINARS
“Art and Conflict”: one-day seminar, guest artists speaking: Hrair Sarkissian and Adela Jusic, Royal College of Art, London, UK, 25May 2013.
In conversation: Hrair Sarkissian and Vali Mahlouji, London based independent curator and writer, Darat Al Funun – The Kalid Shoman Foundation, Amman, Jordan, 2 April 2013.
In conversation: Hrair Sarkissian and Sheena Wagstaff, Chairman of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Metropolitan Museum, New York, organized by Bidoun and the Arts Club, Arts Club, London, UK, 12 February 2013.
Discussion: “Tracing History” Session, organized by Mori Art Museum & Mathaf Arab Museum of Modern Art (MAM Pop-Up Mathaf), Mori Art Museum, Tokyo, Japan,
28 & 29 September 2012.
Artist¢s Talk, The Delfina Foundation, London, UK, 10 September 2010.
Hrair Sarkissian and Nora Razian: Talk as part of the seminar “The lure of the lens in art practice and research methods. Cultural Heritage, Mobility and Visual Practices”, TATE Britain, London, UK, 27 October 2010.
 
RESIDENCIES
2012
Darat al Funun, Amman, Jordan.
Photography Museum, Thessaloniki, Greece.
2010
Platform Garanti Contemporary Art Center, Istanbul, Turkey.
The Delfina Foundation, London, UK.
October-December 2007
Residency organised by Pro Helvetia in Arbeitsgruppe Gästeatelier Krone, Aarau, Switzerland.
July 2007
Workshop “Shantana” organised by Triangle, Amman, Jordan.
June 2007
Project “Here as the Center of the World”, organised by DAI (Dutch Art Institute), Enschede, The Netherlands.
March 2007
Workshop “Moving Walls”, organised by Al Liquindoi with the association of OSI “Open Society Institute”, Damascus, Syria.
January 2007
Project, “Here as the Center of the World”, organised by DAI (Dutch Art Institute) Khartoum, Sudan.
Creation/Residency organised by the French Cultural Center, Amman, Jordan.
May 2006
Project “Here as the Center of the World”, organised by DAI (Dutch Art Institute) Damascus, Syria.
March 2006
Creation/Residency organised by the French Cultural Center, Amman, Jordan.
September 2005
Mediterranean workshop “Terres de Rêves”, organised by the Association Ecume, Seville, Spain, Mezourca, Morocco.
 
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
2006
Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie, condition reporter, Arles, France.
Appointed by the National Museum to create a photographic archive of the restoration work conducted at the Castle of Damascus.
2002-2006
Photography of events for the French Cultural Center in Damascus (Dance, Theatre and Art Performance).
1992-2005
Responsible for the photographic lab SPC, Damascus, Syria.
2004
Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie, condition reporter, Arles, France.
2001
Assistant to the photographer Xavier Zimmermann during his stay in Syria.
1998
Assistant to the photographer Sophie Ristelhueber during her project in Syria.
 
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
Barry Schwabsky, “Under Pressure”, The Nation, 23 September 2014.
Sabine Oize, “Kunst der Scharjah Art Foundation in Köln”, Deutschlanfunk (online),
4 September 2014.
Alana Chloe Esposito, “Other Interpretations”, Canvas, September 2014 (illustration).
Ariella Budick, “A keen eye for the quirks of the Arab world”, Financial Times,
21 August 2014.
Melik Kaylan, “Realities of the Arab World”, Wall Street Journal, 18 August 2014.
The Week, 8 August 2014 (illustration).
Laurence Cornet, “Here and Elsewhere”, Nafas, August 2014.
Christopher Lord, “Here and Elsewhere interview”, Harper¢s Bazzar, July – August 2014 (illustration).
Holland Cotter, “Far From Home, an Arab Summer”, The New York Times, 17 July 2014.
Alexandra Gjorgievska, “New Museum Puts Spotlight on Art From the Arab World”, TIME, 15 July 2014.
“Here and Elsewhere at the New Museum”, Wall Street Journal, 11 July 2014.
“Arab Art Histories, The Khalid Shoman Collection”, essays by Anneka Lenssen, Faisal Damaj, Hassan Khan, Kirsten Scheid, Sarah Rogers, Saleem Al-Bohloly, Stephen Sheehi, Ulrich Loock, edited by Sarah Rogers, Eline van der Vlist, published by The Khalid Shoman Foundation, 2014.
Sarah Lookofsky, “Death of a Cameraman”, ARTFORUM (online), 4 October 2013.
Kaelen Wilson-Goldie, “On Rupture”, Frieze, Issue 154, April 2013, pp. 120-123.
Murtaza Vali, Vali Mahlouji, “extra-ordinary. Hrair Sarkissian” (exhibition catalogue), The Abraaj Group Art Prize (Dubai, UAE), March 2013.
Vali Mahlouji, Artist Profile, CANVAS, July - August 2012.
Dr. Kathy Battista, “Encounter. The Royal Academy in the Middle East” (exhibition catalogue), The Royal Academy in collaboration with Fortune Cookie Projects and The Cultural Village Foundation – Katara (Doha, Katar), 2012.
“For its third edition, Greece¢s second largest city welcomes the Thessaloniki Biennale”, Art Daily, 18 September 2011.
Nat Muller, “Hrair Sarkissian”, Metropolis M, No.4, August - September 2011,
pp. 42-43.
Jenny Murphy, “Refreshed and refreshing”, Financial Times, 25 February 2011.
“The Third Thessaloniki Biennial”, Frieze, Issue 144, January - February 2012.
“Out of Place” (exhibition catalogue), Tate Modern (London, UK) and Darat al Funun - The Khalid Shoman Foundation (Amman, Jordan), 2011.
Regina Mamou, “Syria”, artasiapacific (Almanac 2011), vol. VI, p. 183.
Kaelen Wilson Goldie, “Hrair Sarkissian, Dream Color”, Bidoun, Winter 2010,
pp. 30-31.
“Are You a Lucky Artist?”, Cassa di Risparmio de Modena, Skira, Milano, 2010,
p. 103.
Filippo Maggia, “Breaking News Contemporary Photography from the Middle East and Africa”, Cassa di Risparmio di Modena, Skira, Milano, 2010, pp. 114-119.
Brian Ackley, “Disorientation II: The Rise and Fall of Arab Cities”, Bidoun, Spring 2010, p. 138.                                                  
Prefix Photo, Issue 21, Portfolio Section, Toronto, Canada, 2010, pp. 35-39.
Codigo06140, 2010, Mexico.
Charles Esche, “Best of 2009 - 11th International Istanbul Biennial”, ARTFORUM, December 2009, p. 197.
Kaelen Wilson-Goldie, “Arguing the World”, The National (special art issue),
20 November 2009, pp. 6-7.
“Contemporary Art in the Middle East” (ed. Paul Sloman), Black Dog Publishing, Ltd., London, 2009, pp. 148-151.
11th International Istanbul Biennial 'What Keeps Mankind Alive?' (exhibition catalogue), The Guide, Istanbul, Turkey, pp. 236-237.
Art Dubai Web-Journal, March issue: http://www.artdubai.ae/journal/2009/march/Hrair_Sarkissian.html
Visual Arts in Greece III, ¡And Now?¢ (curated by Christina Petrinou) (exhibition catalogue), State Museum of Contemporary Art, Thessaloniki, pp. 46-47.
Sönke Gau, “In-Between Times and In-Between Spaces”, Camera Austria, no. 102, Summer 2008.
Financial Times,17March 2008 (work illustrated on the back cover of the supplement: Art of Our Time).
ÅÕÅÌÁÆÉÍG DUBAI, Special Issue, March 2008, p.17 and illus., p. 9-12.
SOURA-A Nonconformist Magazine, Special Edition, Art Dubai, March 2008, illus.,
pp. 26-27, 28.
CANVAS, COLLECTOR¢S EDITION, vol. 4, issue 2, illus. p. 56 and on the back cover of the supplement: CANVAS GUIDE.
Nelly Abravanel “Light and shadow in deserted places”, I Kathimerini, Athens,
27 March 2008.
“Unfinished at Kalfayan Galleries”, Time Out, 27 February 2008.
“Unfinished, by Hrair Sarkissian”, O Kosmos tou Ependiti, 5 May 2007.
“Unfinished…”, Ta Nea, 12 May 2007.
 
WORKS IN COLLECTIONS
Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Modena, Modena, Italy.
The Khalid Shoman Private Collection, Amman, Jordan.
Omer Koc Collection, Istanbul, Turkey.
Mori Art Museum, Tokyo, Japan.
The Sharjah Art Foundation, Sharjah, UAE.
TATE MODERN, London, UK.
Private and Institutional collections in Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Spain, UK, Lebanon, Oman, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Hong Kong, Korea and USA.