Beirut Art Center’s exhibition and event series America reflected on what the United States of America mean in our collective unconscious. The exhibition featured sixteen works by artists of different nationalities and backgrounds, living inside and outside of the US. Whether they focus on people, urban environment or natural landscape, whether they dwell on pivotal historical moments or mundane ones, all these works reflect on aspects of American cultural, social and political life that have become of universal relevance.
As a superpower, the US occupy a predominant position in the world, its actions and policies consistently demanding that others position themselves in relation to them, whether in agreement, opposition or somewhere in between, stirring as much feelings of fascination and respect as exasperation and resentment. This is especially true in the Arab world, where the policies and strategies of the US have often been divisive and destabilizing. The Beirut Art Center therefore seeked to take a closer look at the physical and mental territory named America through an exhibition and a series of events. Neither an accusation nor a celebration, the purpose of the exhibition and events was to reflect on the mythologies that have built and perpetuated the idea of America and to consider the ways in which America has been both imagined and imaged by Americans and non-Americans alike.