Hikayat Al Tal

A contemporary art exhibition featuring four Lebanese artists—Firas Hallak, Elsie Haddad, Charbel Samuel Aoun, and Paul Gorra—opens to the public on September 21st, 2024, from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. The exhibition takes place at Hotel Palace, a heritage site on Abdul Hamid Karameh Street (Al Tal) in Tripoli, Lebanon, built during the Ottoman era and later developed under the French Mandate.

The collective showcases a multidisciplinary blend of photography, installation, and moving image, reflecting the vibrant and layered essence of Tripoli, both in form and subject. The artists’ narratives will be on display at Hotel Palace throughout the month-long exhibition.

The exhibition explores the idea that the future is intertwined with the past, forming a continuous loop like a rhizome with no clear beginning or end. Each artist responds to the exhibition’s theme by delving into the unseen connections that bind modern society, as they spread through the city’s pathways, streets, and corridors. Mapping the intricate labyrinth of Tripoli, known for its cultural diversity and its challenge to the notion of time, the exhibition contextualizes the city’s cultural and historical relevance. It is enriched with images, stories, and sounds that resonate within the historic rooms of Hotel Palace.