Mounira Al Solh

In Dancing on the Ruins

Art

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Synopsis

Dancing on the Ruins

How do you hold on to hope in times of violence and oppression? For visual artist Mounira Al Solh, born in Lebanon and based in the Netherlands, making art is her lifeline: a way to ‘resist the feeling that we are doomed.’ 

 

Remarkably, this does not result in somber work. Dancing on the Ruins shows how Al Solh fearlessly builds a multifaceted and playfully activist body of work. Through textiles, ceramics, installations, video and paintings, the artist creates a colorful universe in which she blends personal stories with ancient myths and musical traditions. Her passion is fueled by a deep sense of urgency to offer optimism in a world full of injustice. 

 

Credits

Character
Mounira Al Solh
Director
Bibi Fadlalla
Country
Italy, Netherlands
Duration
17:20
Year
2025
Co-producer
Tangerine Tree
With her poetic and activist art, Mounira Al Solh builds a bridge between East and West.
Mounira Al Solh

biography

Mounira Al Solh

Mounira Al Solh (1978), raised in Lebanon and based in the Netherlands, is a versatile visual artist working with textiles, ceramics, installations, video and paintings. She draws inspiration from both Western and Eastern traditions, stories and music, often weaving together the personal and the political. Her work defies categorisation but is marked by the natural way in which it combines playfulness with social engagement. 

Acclaims
• Solo exhibition in the Bonnefanten in 2025
• Representative of Lebanon during the Biennale di Venezia 2024
• Winner of the ABN AMRO Art Prize 2023 and the Derek William Trust Artes Mundi Purchase Prize 2024

In het atelier

A Land as big as her Skin

Exposition at Bonnefanten Museum

In the film, we see Mounira Al Solh at work in her studio, where she embroiders, draws and develops new installations. The works featured in the film were part of her solo exhibition Mounira Al Solh: A land as big as her skin, which was on view at the Bonnefanten Museum in Maastricht until January 2026.

The exhibition offered a rich and layered overview of her textile work, drawings, videos and ceramics, in which she intertwines the personal and the political in an intuitive and poetic way.

More info: bonnefanten.nl

SCREENINGS
Dancing on the Ruins premiered during the vernissage at the Bonnefanten Museum in Maastricht. Since then, the film has been screened at, among others, Cultura Nova in Heerlen (The Netherlands) and the Beirut International Women Film Festival in Lebanon. Other festivals include:
  • International Film Festival Tbilisi, Georgia
  • Anatolia International Film Festival, Istanbul, Turkey

In addition, the film has been presented in cinema settings at the Bonnefanten Museum and the Arnolfini Arts Museum in Bristol, United Kingdom. It was also shown during the finissage of the Fundação de Serralves in Porto, Portugal. The film is furthermore available via the website of the Bonnefanten Museum.

Mounira Al Solh: Flying, clapping, grooving tasting love. Photo: Gert Jan van Rooij

Director

  • © Marwan Magroun

    Bibi Fadlalla

    Bibi Fadlalla (1978) is a Sudanese-Dutch filmmaker, living and working in the Netherlands. She holds a Masters degree in Media Studies from the University of Amsterdam and graduated from the Documentary Media Studies Program at the New School in New York. Fadlalla combines narrative storytelling with a strong cinematic language, using music and animation. Her documentary The Women of my Land (2020), in which she portrays artist Raquel van Haver, was nominated for the Dutch Golden Calf Award for Best Documentary Short 2021.