Where Do I Go? لوين روح

Where Do I Go? coincides with the 50th anniversary of the start of the Lebanese Civil

War. Through intimate portraits of women photographed across Lebanon, Matar

explores themes of identity, memory, survival, and belonging in a country shaped by

conflict and uncertainty.

The title comes from Arabic graffiti Matar discovered on a damaged wall inside an

abandoned building in Lebanon. The phrase — “Where do I go?” — became a central

question throughout the project, reflecting the emotional reality faced by many

Lebanese people today.

Matar, who left Lebanon during the civil war in 1984, sees the work as both deeply

personal and universal. The photographs connect her own experience with a younger

generation of women now confronting many of the same questions about home,

displacement, and resilience.

Originally trained as an architect, Matar carefully uses the built environment as part of

the emotional language of her images. Many photographs were made in abandoned

hotels, theaters, and damaged modernist buildings throughout Lebanon. In these

spaces, her subjects reclaim places marked by history and loss with strength, beauty,

and presence.

The exhibition includes photographs made in locations such as the former Holiday Inn

in Beirut, the Piccadilly Theater, and sites affected by war and economic collapse.

Rather than focusing on destruction alone, the work highlights endurance, human

connection, and hope.

The opening of the RKG x SEA-DAR Project Space represents a major new

contribution to Boston’s cultural landscape and reinforces the city’s role as a center for

photography and contemporary visual art.

The exhibition is presented with support from Adjective Art & Framing and Leica Gallery

Boston.