Mohamad Hafez, a Syrian architect and artist whose detailed sculptures depict his beloved homeland, wants to give his work to willing institutions to make it more accessible to a new generation of Syrians.
Mr Hafez, who lives in New Haven, Connecticut, was born in Damascus and grew up in Syria and Saudi Arabia. He emigrated to the US in the early 2000s and began his professional career designing skyscrapers but eventually shifted to art.
“I am saying, for me as Mohamad Hafez, I could make a lot of money selling this work, and I'm going to be the first one to put it out for Syria for free,” Mr Hafez, 40, told The National. “Syria comes first and I hope many people will join me in this initiative and say, 'Syria first'.”
His dioramas, which can take years to complete, are incredibly detailed and lifelike portraits of Syria that in part tell a story of longing and nostalgia.
Mr Hafez has not been home since May 2011, when he watched the first signs of the civil war in Deraa, when anti-government protests erupted. He attended one such protest in Damascus at the time.
Until just a few days ago, he was convinced he would never set foot in Syria again.
But all that changed when rebels led by the extremist group Hayat Tahrir Al Shams stormed Syria’s second largest city Aleppo, piercing Bashar Al Assad’s air of, if not invincibility, inevitably. Then the rebels took Hama and Homs and finally Damascus.
In a span of just days, the Assad family's decades of power came crashing down and suddenly Mr Hafez could entertain an entirely new future.
“Had you called me literally five days ago I would have told you I'm very desperate and very down, and I was 100 per cent sure I would not see Damascus in my lifetime and I was about 70 per cent sure my son would not see Damascus in his lifetime,” he said. “As of 72 hours ago, the dream of possibly going back to Damascus is for once a viable solution.”
Now, as he tries to process everything that has transpired, Mr Hafez described himself as a frozen computer with a spinning rainbow wheel going around and around.
For nearly the whole of Syria’s 13-year civil war, he has helped to tell his people's story to the world through his art. Part of his desire to give it to institutions is because in his mind a chapter has closed.
“There is no argument that this era has finished," he said. “People are saying: 'We are afraid of what is coming next.' What is worse than what we have seen? Nothing, nothing is worse than what we've seen.
"So we as creatives in the Syrian diaspora, we need to first realise the era has ended, and that we were fortunate enough to create work that reflected that era.”
Mr Hafez said he is not sure exactly how it will work and who will be interested in his art, but that he is determined to see it through.
He estimates that he has done about 100 pieces, some of which are just sketches, others much more elaborate.
“I am invested in the new generation,” he said. “So what is the best thing for me to give them? It is this way of emotionally connecting to what had happened through art. They connect, they understand, they hopefully invest, they grow the love and we move forward.”
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
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ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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Director: Saeed Roustaee
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre, 4-cylinder turbo
Transmission: CVT
Power: 170bhp
Torque: 220Nm
Price: Dh98,900
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
2019 ASIAN CUP FINAL
Japan v Qatar
Friday, 6pm
Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Western Region Asia Cup T20 Qualifier
Sun Feb 23 – Thu Feb 27, Al Amerat, Oman
The two finalists advance to the Asia qualifier in Malaysia in August
Group A
Bahrain, Maldives, Oman, Qatar
Group B
UAE, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia
J%20Street%20Polling%20Results
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