Aswat – Syrian Voices exhibition opens at the Museum of World Culture, Gothenburg

Featuring personal accounts of leaving, loss and hope, the exhibition Aswat – Syrian Voices will open soon at the Museum of World Culture in Gothenburg, Sweden. On display are contemporary art objects from Syria as well as video interviews produced by Swedish Television, SVT, as part of the project #Syrien200.

Syria is today the country in the world with most refugees. The more than six year long civil war is the deadliest, still raging, conflict in the world. Over seven million Syrians have left their homes and in 2017, Syrians became the largest group of refugees in Sweden.

-”Aswat” means ”voices” in Arabic. Inside the exhibition you will meet people who share a common fate as they escaped war torn Syria and made their way to Sweden. I believe their stories together with featured artwork truly will both affect and move visitors, said Bianca Leidi, exhibition producer at the Museum of World Culture.

Aswat – Syrian Voices is partly based on the project #Syrien200 by SVT. Included are 200 stories about the reasons behind leaving Syria, the escape as well as life in Sweden following the journey. The exhibition aims to give those who have come to Sweden a face, voice and a platform to share their personal stories. While all 200 accounts will be featured, the Museum of World Culture has in cooperation with a group of young Syrians chosen twelve stories that will be featured on large screens.

Also in the exhibition are contemporary art objects made by five Syrian artists who all work with themes such as loss, rootlessness and memories. The art display was developed in close partnership with Abir Boukhari, co-founder and curator for AllArtNow, Syria’s first independent center for contemporary art.

The exhibition is available in Swedish, English and Arabic, also on digital platforms.

Aswat – Syrian Voices opens on the 23rd of September and closes during autumn of 2018, on display with permission by Swedish Television, SVT.