Carla Salem

Carla Salem is a prizewinning, multidisciplinary Lebanese artist who specialises in papermaking and printmaking. She gained a BFA in Graphic Design in 2000 from the American University of Beirut, before travelling to Japan, where she lived for several years. There, she furthered her studies, achieving an MFA in Design (Papermaking, Printmaking) from Nagoka Institute of Design (NID) in 2009 and obtaining a PhD in Design (Papermaking, Urushi Lacquer) from Tokyo University of Arts, School of Fine Arts. 

Salem also undertook further studies and attended various workshops in her specialist field, including: Kintsugi workshop, Tools and Restoration, ‘Suyama’ ceramic techniques, Nagano, Japan (2018); Paper Restoration: 1700-1800s Books and Archival Documents, San Gemini, Italy (2016); ‘Introduction to Islamic Codicology’, The Islamic Manuscript Association, Cambridge, UK, AUB (2012-2018); and Kintsugi workshop: ‘Ogimura’ Ceramic Restoration, Nagano, Japan (2005-2012). She also undertook extensive research on Washi paper at the Nagaoka Institute of Design, Niigata, Japan (2005-12).

Salem’s work is rooted in both Japan, a country with which she retains strong ties, and her birthplace, Lebanon. Trained in traditional Japanese techniques, she not only combines aspects of the country’s language and culture in her work with her native Arabic, but also creates her art on self-made mulberry papers (Washi), exploring its surface, texture and interaction with light, as part of her process. When taking traditional calligraphy classes in Japan and Lebanon, she quickly became fascinated with the way that the rules and structures for individual writing systems differed from each other. “The Japanese writing system contains four components, for example, which I discovered while attending language classes there, with every symbol significant and relevant in its own way,” she explained in an interview with Artscoops.

In her work, she sets out to free the writing system from previous associations, through visual means and by using movement and rhythm in the flow of the letters. Thinking, speaking and mixing languages enables her to experiment with the playful and poetic aspects of calligraphy, including interplays and plays on words. 

Salem explores topical issues related to change, such as impermanence and instability, in her work. These themes are prompted in part by her experiences in Lebanon, from childhood memories of war to more recent conflicts, crises and times of upheaval, alongside others in Japan, including the earthquake tremors witnessed there. 

Salem participated in the landmark ‘Beirut Mapped’ project (2021), a series of reflections from local artists and writers about the impact on Lebanese people of the economic crisis and the explosion at Beirut Port on August 4, 2020. The project was organised in partnership with the Arab Image Foundation, Beirut, and formed part of the V&A’s Jameel Programming. Salem also undertook numerous repairs on artworks damaged in the explosion. 

Her work has featured in several solo exhibitions, including: ‘Twofold’, Agial Art Gallery, Beirut (2016); ‘Birdhouses and Paper’, installation and workshop, Niigata, Japan (2008); ‘Heiwa’, NID, Niigata, Japan (2008); and ‘Swirlips & Hanabees’, installation and workshop, Niigata, Japan (2007).

She has also taken part in several group shows, including: ‘Works on Paper’, Agial Art Gallery, Beirut (2022); ‘Women of Resilience: Female’, Tsichritzis Visual Arts Foundation, Kifissia, Athens (2019); ‘(Nothing But) Flowers’, Saleh Barakat Gallery, Beirut (2019); ‘Out of Context’, Saleh Barakat Gallery, Beirut (2019); ‘Cultural Narratives’, Alserkal Exhibition, Dubai and CAP, Kuwait City (2018); ‘The Art of Humanity’, Imago Mundi, Palermo, Italy (2017); ‘3 Permanent Collection Selections’, King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture, Saudi Arabia (2015); ‘Art Lounge’, Beiteddine (Summer 2015); ‘Art Love New York’, (2015); Chouf, Lebanon (2015); ‘Ramadaniyat Beirutiya’, Beirut (2015); BIEL, Beirut, Lebanon (2015); ‘Reminiscence of Calligraphy in Contemporary Art’, Artscoops (2015); ‘Art Love New York Edition 2’, New York (2015); ‘Word’, Agial Art Gallery, Beirut [organized by the British Museum] (2014); ‘The Graphic Design 20th Anniversary’, American University of Beirut, Beirut (2013); Moineau Gallery, Tokyo, (2012); ‘The Doctoral Program Final Exhibition’, Tokyo (2011); ‘Kamitonomojigatari’, Fine Arts Museum of the Tokyo University of Arts, Tokyo (2011); ‘Doctoral Program Final Exhibit’, Tokyo University of the Arts, Fine Art Museum, Tokyo (2011); ‘International Design Exhibition for Best Brand’, Gallery Yiang, Seoul, South Korea (2010); KDAA International Invitational Exhibition, Donghae Arts Center Gallery, Gangwon-do, South Korea (2009); and the NID Master’s Thesis Project Exhibit, Niigata, Japan (2009).

Carla Salem is the recipient of several prizes and awards, including: the 2014 Calligraphy Prize of Honour and Art Residency in Brussels; the Boghossian Foundation Prize in Brussels (2014); ‘Inter-University’ Exchange Programme: Tokyo/Kyoto (2011); Prize of Excellence for the MA Graduate Work (2009); 7th Tohoku Poster Competition Prize (2006); and the Monbukagakusho Japanese Scholarship (2005).

Her work has featured in a number of high-profile publications, including books, as well as magazine and scholarly articles. Carla Salem lives and works in Beirut, where she also teaches at AUB.