Artistic Team:

Dino Ahmad Ali (Visual Artist) https://ahmadali.fr/

In collaboration with Nidhal Chemengui and Wael Bouargoub (Community engagement and podcast recording)

Production:

Echos Electrik

Schedule:

April 1–8, 2026

Location:

Installation in Ksar El Ferch

Theme:

With *L’arbre à paroles*, Syrian artist Dino Ahmed Ali presents a site-specific work that blends the memory of the place, collective participation, and visual experience. It invites visitors to discover the Ksar through the eyes and words of those who live there and bring it to life today.

The goal of this Land Art residency is to confer cultural and artistic status on the Ksar El Ferch site and to highlight this iconic local heritage. Near the entrance stands an olive tree, withered by the region’s arid climate, transformed into a vessel for collective memory. On its branches, calligraphic ribbons flutter in the wind. They were created in collaboration with residents and artisans during gatherings dedicated to the history and future of the Ksar and the region it represents. Each resident who participated chose two words—one linked to the past, the other looking toward the future. Together, they form a mosaic of voices and perspectives that tells the story of the connection between the community and its territory.

These sessions, facilitated by artist Dino Ahmad Ali and his collaborators, were recorded to create a series of podcasts, extending the work’s reach and sharing these testimonies with a wider audience.

Behind the tree, a structure composed of 190 wooden slats painted in primary colors is created collectively during participatory workshops. This element complements the installation and creates a visual interaction with the tree. When visitors look through these colored lines, an optical effect appears: the colors overlay the branches and create an impression of vibration or pixelation, which changes depending on the light, the wind, and the viewer’s position. This visual effect gives the tree a new presence, as if it were coming to life through movement and color.

A Syrian artist trained at the Damascus Academy of Fine Arts, Dino Ahmad Ali has developed a practice based on optical illusions and visual experimentation. His works—installations, anamorphoses, street art, interactive paintings, and digital creations—explore the limits of perception. At the heart of his approach, interaction with the public becomes a central element, generating a genuine sensory and kinetic dialogue between the artwork and the viewer.