Until 22 February 2023, Zawyeh Gallery invites everyone to visit Utilities, Dia Mrad’s first solo exhibition in the Emirates. This Lebanese photographer explores Beirut’s economic collapse by documenting its material manifestations across the city.
Taking pictures of solar panels, water tanks, generators, and banks’ façades that now use metal instead of glass Mrad mostly focuses on how people live through certain objects and activities. Overall, in the Utilities series, he aims to celebrate the resilience of the Lebanese people.
About the photographer
Residing in Beirut, Dia Mrad (born in 1991) specialises in interiors and architecture photography. In 2014, he graduated from the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (Jounieh, Lebanon) with a B.S. in Architecture. In 2017, he received a Master’s degree in Architecture from the same university.
Aiming to understand Beirut, Dia started photographing it in 2019 with a special focus on architecture, showing its beauty, charm, and symmetry. Using his Fujifilm camera, the photographer captures the changing urban environment from aesthetic, social-economic, and cultural perspectives.
Dia has his works displayed in many solo and group exhibitions including The Road To Reframe, Fondation Château Mercier, Sierre, Switzerland (2021); Gallery Salahin, Paris, France (2021); Artists For Beirut, California, USA (2020); and others. His photographs have been featured in such permanent collections as Dalloul Art Foundation (Beirut, Lebanon); Barjeel Art Foundation (Sharjah, UAE); Boghossian Foundation (Brussels, Belgium); A.R.M. Holding (Dubai, UAE); and the Coronet Theatre (London, UK).
To learn more about Utilities, please visit the official web page of the exhibition.
You might also be interested in visiting the Proposals for a Memorial to Partition exhibition.
