WHW Akademija

Christian Sleiman (1994, Beirut) is a Lebanese artist based in Beirut. He double majored in Architecture (Master’s Degree) from University of Holy Spirit Kaslik and Fine Arts (Bachelor’s Degree) from the Lebanese University. His practice examines vegetative souls through minor rituals, fabulations and recipes. Using food as a medium for day to day survival, the practice weaves a collection of invitations between foraging, cooking and serving food to explore the political implications of eating and its communal value. These acts reveal a deeper communal understanding of ecosystems and the seasonality of lands passed on through generational knowledge.

After his fellowship in Home Workspace program with Ashkal Alwan in 2020, he worked on an artist book titled a brief Introduction to tesliq funded by Mophradat and AFAC. “Tesliq” is a dialect commonly used in rural areas of Lebanon that translates to foraging. The book explores the politics of plant-growth in a highly fabricated setup in Beirut while using foraging as a tool to reclaim food and land in the city. In one of his recent researches during a program with the Goethe-Institut Libanon, he explored the performative aspect of foraging through a set of rituals derived from oral histories. The performance consisted of invitations that went from making tea remedies with foraged shrubs from the city to sharing a meal together. Alongside his recent performances, Christian’s drawings were published recently in Mizna Comix Issue 2021 and Samandal Comes issue #17.

Artist's website and Instagram.

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1.”a city guide for treehuggers”, Video and photo series; 2.”a city guide for treehuggers”, Video and photo series; 3.”soap portraits”, twelve soap bars, a collaboration with Nihat Karatasli; 4.”a seasonal ritual”, Final presentation during ArtEvolution Program by Goethe-Institut; 5.Excerpt from “a brief introduction to tesliq”, artist book; 6.”a seasonal ritual”, presentation at Hammana Artist House; 7.Excerpt from “a brief introduction to tesliq”, artist book; 8.”a seasonal ritual”, presentation at Künstlerhaus Mousonturm; 9.”a seasonal ritual”, Installation at Galerie Tanit; 10.Foraging trips; 11.“a brief introduction to tesliq”, Book mock-up

Artist statement

Since the revolution that started on 17 October 2019 in Beirut, Lebanon has been in a state of free fall for three years now; losing trust in the banking system, ruling class of politicians and food sovereignty. My practice took shape at the intersection of the food shortage due to the economic collapse and our own agency for gathering and processing food from my upbringing. I had the chance to re-immerse myself in local rituals in my village during the first lockdown in 2020. This is where and when I found foraging as a tool to navigate through my understanding of wilderness, sustainability and cooking. While following a journey of picking up, identifying and cooking local shrubs, I learned some local insights, remedies and myths from collecting to serving. It’s at this intersection that I realized how being in tune to the seasonality of nature can offer a way to navigate through tough times, strengthen a multi-specie connection and question the politics of food.

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