Rania Matar Explained

Rania Matar
Birth Place:Lebanon
Nationality:American / Lebanese
Alma Mater:American University of Beirut,
Cornell University
Known For:Fine art photography

Rania Matar (born 1964) is a Lebanese/Palestinian/American documentary, portrait and fine art photographer. She photographs the daily lives of girls and women in the Middle East and in the United States, including Syrian refugees.[1]

Early life

Matar was born and raised in Lebanon and moved to the U.S. in 1984.[2] [3] Originally trained as an architect at the American University of Beirut and at Cornell University, she later studied photography at the New England School of Photography and the Maine Photographic Workshops. Since 2009 she has taught photographic workshops for teenage girls in Lebanon’s refugee camps. She now teaches at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design and exhibits her work worldwide.[4]

Career

Matar has made several series of photographs, including SHE, L'Enfant Femme, Unspoken Conversations, Women Coming of Age, A Girl and Her Room, Invisible Children, and Ordinary Lives. Her portraits explore gender studies and often consider varying national identities. L'Enfant Femme depicts preteen girls living in the United States and the Middle East, and focuses on documenting the age between childhood and maturity.[5] Mothers and daughters are photographed together and present a universal nature of womanhood in the series Unspoken Conversations.[5] Matar began her series Invisible Children after a visit to Beirut in 2014. She noticed how many Syrian refugee children were on the streets begging for work and money.[6] This series documents the individuality of each child.[7] In 2017, Matar's work was included in the Biennale of the Contemporary Arab World held in Paris at the Arab World Institute.[8]

Publications

Awards

Notes and References

  1. News: Goukassian . Elena . 4 October 2016 . Looking at the Invisible Children Growing Up as Refugees . en-US . . live . 15 March 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230202012452/https://hyperallergic.com/327313/looking-invisible-children-growing-refugees/ . 2 February 2023.
  2. News: Durant . Mark Alice . 7 October 2016 . Rania Matar: Invisible Children at C. Grimaldis Gallery . Photograph Magazine . live . 15 March 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210120221633/https://photographmag.com/reviews/rania-matar-invisible-children-at-c-grimaldis-gallery/ . 20 January 2021.
  3. Web site: Davies . Catriona . 1 July 2011 . Arab and American teenagers open their bedroom doors . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230521012156/http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/meast/07/01/photography.arab.us.teenagers/ . 21 May 2023 . 20 May 2023 . . en.
  4. News: 12 January 2016 . Dubaï : Rania Matar, Becoming Girls, Women and Coming of Age . en-US . The Eye of Photography . live . subscription . 15 March 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230128040310/https://loeildelaphotographie.com/en/dubai-rania-matar-becoming-girls-women-and-coming-of-age/ . 28 January 2023.
  5. News: Rosenberg . David . 4 March 2015 . These Photos Beautifully Capture the Complex Relationship Between Mothers and Daughters . en-US . . live . 15 March 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221225142946/https://slate.com/culture/2015/03/rania-matar-unspoken-conversations-examines-the-universal-and-complex-nature-of-mother-and-daughter-relationships-photos.html . 25 December 2022 . 1091-2339.
  6. News: Urist . Jacoba . 4 April 2017 . How Should Art Address Human Rights? . en-US . . live . 15 April 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221225142834/https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2017/04/how-should-art-address-human-rights/521520/ . 25 December 2022.
  7. News: Jaafari . Shirin . 10 November 2014 . Giving Syrian children their identities back, one portrait at a time . en-US . . . live . 15 March 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221225142922/https://theworld.org/stories/2014-11-10/giving-syrian-children-their-identities-back-one-portrait-time . 25 December 2022.
  8. News: 27 September 2017 . Biennale of Arab Photographers : Interview with Rania Matar . en-US . The Eye of Photography . live . subscription . 28 September 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191014031202/https://loeildelaphotographie.com/en/biennale-of-arab-photographers-interview-with-rania-matar/ . 14 October 2019.
  9. Web site: 2009 . The Best Books of 2009 . deviated . https://web.archive.org/web/20120108022622/http://www.photoeye.com/Magazine_Admin/Index.cfm/bestbooks.2009.books . 8 January 2012 . 15 March 2017 . Photo Eye Magazine.
  10. Web site: Van Oot . Torey . 27 January 2016 . A Look Inside The Rooms Of Teens In Two Very Different Worlds . live . https://archive.today/20230521020801/https://www.refinery29.com/en-gb/2016/01/104565/rania-matar-teen-bedroom-pictures . 21 May 2023 . 20 May 2023 . Refinery29 . en-GB.
  11. News: 1 December 2016 . Notable Photo Books of 2016: Part 2 . en-US . Photo District News . live . 15 March 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200311014808/https://pdnonline.com/features/photo-books/notable-photo-books-2016-part-2/ . 11 March 2020.
  12. Web site: 2018 . Rania Matar - Fellow: Awarded 2018 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230521011516/https://www.gf.org/fellows/rania-matar/ . 21 May 2023 . 20 May 2023 . Guggenheim Foundation.
  13. Web site: 2 November 2022 . Fellows Notes - Nov 22 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230428231611/https://artsake.massculturalcouncil.org/fellows-notes-nov-22/ . 28 April 2023 . 20 May 2023 . ArtSake . Massachusetts Cultural Council . en-US.
  14. Web site: Djudjic . Dunja . 16 March 2022 . Leica Women Foto Project announces its powerful 2022 winners . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20221219190058/https://www.diyphotography.net/leica-women-foto-project-announces-its-powerful-2022-winners/ . 19 December 2022 . 20 May 2023 . DIY Photography . en-US.
  15. Web site: 8 March 2022 . Leica Camera USA Announces 3rd Annual Leica Women Foto Project Award Winners & Mentees Leica Camera US . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230228025654/https://leica-camera.com/en-US/event/leica-camera-usa-announces-3rd-annual-leica-women-foto-project-award-winners-mentees . 28 February 2023 . 20 May 2023 . . en-US.

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