São Paulo – Movie theaters in Lebanon will be portrayed in Taswir, a fotografia árabe contemporânea (Taswir, contemporary Arab photography), an exhibit opening Thursday (28) and running through April 28 at Instituto Tomie Ohtake in São Paulo. The show will feature work by 14 photographers, including Germany’s Stephan Zaubitzer, who’s known for taking pictures of movie venues around the world.
Zaubitzer has photographed several movie theaters, and the featured pictures are part of a series focusing on the Mediterranean. “The oldest movie theater was founded in La Ciotat whose facade looks out over the sea. This cinema made me want to cross this sea,” the photographer told ANBA via email. Zaubitzer is referring to the first movie theater ever, in France – which is bathed by the Mediterranean Sea, as are Arab countries like Lebanon.
In taking photos of Mediterranean theaters, the artist intends to pull together the memories and imaginations of women and men on both sides of the Sea. Zaubitzer explains that Southern Mediterranean movie theaters are his most important project. He started out in 2010 and expects to complete it with a trip to Algeria.
Zaubitzer lives and works in France. In 2015, he exhibited at Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil (CCBB) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. “I am happy to exhibit again in this country,” he said. The photographer claims that the works in the São Paulo exhibit are designed to encourage people to come together and tear down the walls that are getting built around the world nowadays.
Stephan Zaubitzer studied History, but claims he picked photography so he could be close to reality. “My project is to photograph the real It is about organizing the chaos of the real to find a logic,” he said. His work has been shown in France, Germany, Lebanon, Cuba, the Czech Republic, Austria, Belgium, Romania and Brazil.
He has won several major photography awards, including the Arts and Spectacles category at World Press 2004, and undertaken six residencies, including at the French Institute in Beirut, Lebanon, the Consulate of France in Rio de Janeiro and the French Institute in Casablanca, Morocco.
The exhibit in São Paulo is being held by the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce and the Arab World Institute (AWI). Besides marking Arab Community Day in Brazil (March 25), it celebrates the 74th anniversary of the Arab League. It’s a reissue of two previous AWI exhibits – one on Arab civilization as portrayed by young photographers, and another on Christians in the East.
Quick facts
Exhibition: Taswir, a fotografia árabe contemporânea
Opening: March 28, 7h30, guests only
Open through April 28, 2019, Tuesday to Sunday, 11am to 8pm
Free admission
Instituto Tomie Ohtake
Avenida Faria Lima, 201, Complexo Aché Cultural
Entrance on Rua Coropés, 88, Pinheiros, São Paulo, SP
Nearest subway station: Faria Lima, Line 4 – Yellow
Phone: +55 11 2245-1900
Website: www.institutotomieohtake.org.br
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
