Artists look for photographic escape from cruel reality

BEIRUT－The Lebanese artist Maher Attar says he wants to convey a message of hope to viewers through a photo exhibition he organized in Beirut, the Lebanese capital he lived in and loved.

"Through images of independence, deprivation, immigration and what's left up to interpretation, my curation portrays Beirut as a woman who had endured war and hardships but never crumbled," Attar says.

The four-week exhibition, titled Up and Coming－Talented Photographers, began on Aug 9. The event is uplifting for the artists of Lebanon, mired in a deep economic slump that has forced many artists to leave the country and caused many cultural activities to be suspended.