8 - 25 May
PTA Amsterdam

Mapping Sitting
Together with visual artist Akram Zaatari, Walid Ra‘ad produced the exhibition Mapping Sitting, that consists of a large collection of portrait photographs from the Arab world, dating from the early 20th century until circa 1950. Taking a wide range of institutional group portraits, passport photographs, portraits taken by street photographers and spontaneous photos as their starting point, they explore the function of the photographic portrait in the Arab world: as a (luxury )product, as a decorative element, as a description of individuals and groups, and as a reflection of social identities, hereby offering an insight into the Arab social and visual culture. Mapping Sitting is the first major project of the Arab Image Foundation. The foundation's aim is to analyze the history of audio-visual culture in the Arab world.

The Atlas Group Project and Mapping Sitting can be visited in the Passenger Terminal Amsterdam.

On 10 May, at 20.00 hrs, Walid Ra‘ad will give a lecture / performance in the PTA’s auditorium. Before, at 18.00 hrs, the videotapes Hostage: The Bachar tapes and The Dead Weight of a Quarrel Hangs will be screened.

The exhibition Mapping Sitting is made possible in part by the European Cultural Foundation.