Rola Khayyat is a Lebanese interdisciplinary artist and curator based in Brooklyn, NY. Her work explores new dimensions on the representation of war, memory, and identity. Rola has curated shows in Beirut, Thessaloniki, and New York, such as the BEYroute for the third Thessaloniki Bienniale, Lattice Work at the Black and White gallery, Simmer at Kunstraum LLC. and Light in Wartime at apexart. Her work has been exhibited widely, including exhibitions at the Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art, Okk / raum 29, Catalyst Arts Belfast Photo Festival 2013, the 21st International Istanbul Art Fair and North of History (NY). Khayyat received her B.A. in historical studies from the American University of Beirut (2003), a diploma in Intensive Drawing from the Florence Academy of Art (2005) and an MFA in Visual Arts from Columbia University (2016).

EDUCATION

2016  

MFA in Visual Arts, Columbia University School of the Arts, New York, NY

2005 

Diploma in Intensive Drawing, Florence Academy of Art, Florence, Italy

2003 

Bachelor of Arts, American University of Beirut, Department of History, Beirut, Lebanon

SOLO AND TWO-PERSON EXHIBITIONS

2018

Appearances & Disappearances, two- person show with Sanaz Mazinani, North of History, NY

From Brooklyn to Beirut, Screening and Panel Event, AJHS, NY

2017

Selkeh W Emneh, Secret Dungeon, Brooklyn, NY

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2018

North of History Goes South ‘Part I’ Retrospective , North Of History, NY

2017

Backyard Biennial, curated by Patrice Helmar, Ridgewood Queens, NY

2016

Berlin in Arabic, Kreuzberg Pavillon, Berlin, Germany

Finished Goods Warehouse, curated by Natalie Bell, Pfizer, Brooklyn, NY

Columbia MFA Thesis Exhibition, curated by Regine Basha, Fisher Landau Center, Long Island City, NY

Cross­-Cultural Dialogue: Sino­ American, Javits Center, New York, NY

2015 

First Year MFA Exhibition, The Miriam & Ira D. Wallach Art Gallery, Columbia University, New York, NY

2014   

Personal Territories

2013   

Open Doors, Forum Eugenio de Almeida, Evora, Portugal 

Catalyst Arts Belfast Photo Festival, Love and Death & The Black Box, Belfast, Northern Ireland

2012 

Summer Show, Alte Saline Hallein, Salzburg Summer Academy 

Carry On, the Arab Collaboration Project, Artist in Residency at Artellewa, Cairo, Egypt

Middle Escapes, Afro Asiatisches Institut, Vienna, Austria

2011  

21st International Istanbul Art Fair (Tuyap), Neo Art Gallery, Istanbul, Turkey 

BEYroute, Zico House, Beirut, Lebanon 

Roaming Images, MMCA, Thessaloniki, Greece 

War and Peace, G11 Gallery, Berlin, Germany 

2010 

UFA 3d Mapping Event, Beirut, Lebanon

Photography Show, Falbrook House of the Arts, Falbrook, CA

2009

Rise & Fall, BOA Events – Public Assembly, Brooklyn/New York, White Room/Miami, DC9/Washington, Enormous Room/Boston, Tazza Cafe/Providence, The Purple Lounge/The Standard Hollywood, Los Angeles

UAE Images, SIM – Signage, Imaging & Media Exhibition at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, Abu Dhabi

Colors of Life, The Gallery Art & Design, Richmond, VA

Personally Political Contemporary Sensation, Kunsthaus Tacheles, Berlin, Germany

2008 

Free Range, Metafora, Barcelona, Spain

Tera de Ningu, Polidor Centre de Produccio Cultural, Barcelona, Spain

CURATORIAL PROJECTS

2018

Light in Wartime, Apexart, Tribeca, NY

2016

Simmer, curated by Rola Khayyat and Jiwoon Yoon, Kunstraum, Brooklyn, NY

Lattice Work, curated by Rachel Stern, Alex Strada, Emily Kloppenburg and Rola Khayyat, Black & White Project Space, Brooklyn, NY

2011

BEYroute, Roaming Images, 3rd Thessaloniki Biennial, Zico House, Beirut, Lebanon & MMCA, Thessaloniki, Greece

WORKSHOPS & RESIDENCIES

2018

The notion of home, International Summer Academy of Fine Arts, Salzburg, Austria

2012 

Not a thousand words: Photography and Narrative with Jo Ractliffe, Salzburg International Summer Academy of Fine Arts, Salzburg, Austria

Arab Collaboration Project, Artellewa, Cairo, Egypt

2008 

Metafora, International School of Contemporary Art and Art Therapy, Barcelona, Spain

CONFERENCES

2017

Rumpus: America and the Age of Trump, Pieces of US: The Intimate as Imperial Archive, The American University in Cairo, Cairo, Egypt

AWARDS, GRANTS & FELLOWSHIPS

2016    

Apexart’s Unsolicited Exhibition Program (UEP), NY

Visual Arts Fellowship, Columbia University, School of the Arts, NY