ASIYA AL SHARABI

Dates of residency: May till July 2016
Born: 1972
Nationality: Yemeni
Lives and works: Virginia, United States
Education: 
1998 BA English Literature, University of Sana'a
Selected shows:
2019 Trumperie & The Immigrant, University Of Richmond, Virginia
2018 Executive (Dis)Order: Art, Displacement & the Ban, Queens Museum, NY
2018 aSIYA, The Immigrant & The Butterfly, Reynolds Art Gallery, Virginia
2017 Before We Were Banned, ArtHelix Gallery, Brooklyn

THE ARTIST
Asiya Al Sharabi started her career as a journalist and photographer then shifted her focus to artistic photography. As a Middle Eastern female artist, she faced many challenges during her career as a photographer. She has turned her lens to art photography to capture the energy and personality of Arab women who are, through cultural structures, sometimes not allowed to be photographed. She uses a self-developed technique that focuses on both aesthetics and the underlying struggles of women from around the world. Her work questions the effect of culture and religion on female identity.

 THE RESIDENCY
While at BAR, Al Sharabi drew inspiration from her surrounding, developing several personal art projects and contributing humanitarian work. She encountered women in the Bekaa valley that refused to be photographed, Asiya moved the lens of her camera to capture their feet instead, challenging certain stigmas about  these women. Al Sharabi also organized a workshop for Syrian children at a refugee camp in Tripoli. Her art workshops encouraged the children to articulate their respective dreams and aspirations.