Guerrilla 2007-2014

'Guerilla 2007-2014' is a series of 33 hand-painted photographs reflecting on the 33 Day War in Lebanon. Also known as the Second Arab War, the conflict was fought between the Hezbollah paramilitary and the Israeli military. Starting on 12 July 2006, it continued until a United Nations-brokered ceasefire went into effect in the morning on 14 August 2006. It was observed by Australian peacekeepers serving in United Nations Truce Supervision Organisation (UNTSO).

This work is a first-hand response to the conflict by Lebanese Australian artist Khaled Sabsabi, who returned to his homelands just days after the ceasefire. As he wandered the streets, he adopted a documentary-style approach to depict the scenes of destruction across the city of Beirut: buildings destroyed, streets litter with debris, and people wandering aimlessly amongst the rubble.

Each image, symbolically representing a day of the conflict, has been individually over-painted by the artist. Joining together to form part of an overall narrative, his technique while draws on well-known traditions of Persian miniature painting, in a cathartic approach to both examine and reclaim the spaces and locations of the destruction. "I had this idea that if you destroy [by appropriating] the image, the image will die' ... 'the essence of the image, the core of the image, what the image represents, not the physical picture, but that image of violence and hate, then it will die'.

As an artist Sabsabi’s work is directly informed by his migrant experience as a Lebanese immigrant who resettled in Australia in 1978. He specialises in multimedia and site-specific installations, often involving people on the margins of society. In 2003, he returned to Lebanon for the first time, which led to a re engagement with the region and its people. He continues to work across borders, culture and disciplines to make artworks that challenge extreme principles and actions.