1. Syrian artist Fadia
Afashe prepares for
her exhibition at the
Levantine Cultural
Center in Los
Angeles. Her
paintings depict the
pain and suffering
she and those around
her have experienced
during the
revolution, but “I still
see the hope,” she
says in an interview
shortly before the
opening of her show,
“I RISE.”

2. Fadia studies her
painting, “Under
Shelling,” which
depicts regime
attacks on civilian
neighborhoods, such
as the one in which
her parents reside.
Fadia admits that it
has been difficult to
stay safely in the US
while the revolution
rages at home, but
she feels that she can
be a better advocate
for the Syrian people
here, where she can
communicate more
openly and reach a
wider audience.

3. “Touchable.” Fadia’s
friend, a 35-year-old
mother of two and a
creative activist,
disappeared in
December 2011. The
regime has denied
that they arrested
her. According to
Fadia, many Syrian
artists—including
actors, writers,
musicians, and
cartoonists—have
become public role
models for boldly
speaking out against
the regime.

4. “The Pianist.” The
famous Syrian pianist
Malek Jandali has
composed songs in
support of the
revolution, including
his award-winning
composition, “Watani
Ana” (“I Am My
Homeland”). As an
American citizen and
resident, he remains
outside of the
regime’s reach, but in
July 2011, Syrian
security forces
brutally beat his
elderly parents living
in Damascus,
according to Jandali.

5. Fadia’s pain and
sorrow after learning
of a close relative’s
arrest and
interrogation fueled
her painting,
“Interrogation” (left).
She still fears for her
family’s safety in
Damascus and
worries that her
show in LA could
make them a target
for retribution.
However, she has
found inspiration
among the youth of
her country.
“Without them I
[would] never be
able to have this
exhibition,” she tells
me the day before
the exhibition opens.

6. “Mother.” In the
early days of the
revolution, Fadia met
a mother in
Damascus who had
seen her son
tortured. The mother
was still in shock. To
Fadia it seemed as if
the mother was
simply going through
the motions of life, as
if she had no head.

7. “Black Hole.” The
regime stripped and
imprisoned Fadia’s
28-year-old friend
after she led a
peaceful
demonstration in
Damascus. Fadia
herself was
imprisoned shortly
after the revolution
began. She was
released after a
matter of hours, but
to her it felt like days.

8. In Fadia’s “Can’t Be”
(left), she and her
husband hold each
other to feel safe. In
her “Transformation”
(right), Fadia sits
alone, realizing that
her ideals give her
the power to
overcome
dictatorship. Despite
the hopelessness and
frustration she has
felt as the conflict
continues to take its
toll, she confides,
“Syria will continue.
We will get our
freedom no matter
what the price will
be.”

9. Michael Rood, a
former intern at the
Levantine Cultural
Center, studies
Fadia’s artwork at
her show’s opening
night. Fadia hopes
that those who see
or buy her paintings
will spread the word
and support her
cause: encouraging
the US to assist the
Syrian opposition.

10. “His Soul.” Fadia’s
final painting in the “I
RISE” series portrays
the soul of her
husband’s cousin
who died from
torture. Fadia
explains that this
painting is a fervent
cry to the world for
help: “His soul [is]
asking you to speak
out for him... [He’s
saying], ‘I died for
freedom. What have
you done?’”