Present Tense
My father’s family is from Syria, originally from a town in the northwest called Mashta al-Helu, from which I bear my last name. Looking for ways to voice my despair over violence in the Middle East, I started to produce works claiming my own Arab roots. The project is a conceptual investigation of the frictions that emerge at the intersection of Middle-Eastern lineage and queerness.
This is an autobiographical exploration of my own internalized feelings about homophobia while addressing the complexities and stereotypes of my immigrant heritage.
This is an autobiographical exploration of my own internalized feelings about homophobia while addressing the complexities and stereotypes of my immigrant heritage.

Holding a tintype of myself
2015
I commissioned Kari Orvik, a San Francisco photographer specialized in producing tintype, to make a portrait of me.
2015
I commissioned Kari Orvik, a San Francisco photographer specialized in producing tintype, to make a portrait of me.







Shroud
2015
2015








