“On January 22nd 2014, a day after a suicide bomb attack hit Beirut’s southern suburb, Lebanese rapper Hussein Sharaffedine, also known as Double A The Preacherman was wrongly accused of being a terrorist and was publicly detained by security forces at a checkpoint. In the span of 34 days in early 2014, 5 bombing incidents shook the city killing many civilians in which Jihadists were held accountable. Sharaffedine’s arrest at a checkpoint was undoubtedly associated with his physical appearance that many might refer to as “terrorist beard” defined by Urban Dictionary as “a style of beard that is commonly found in terrorists.” My photographs of young bearded men from around the country linked in one particular feature being their facial hair ended up redefining the series “Terror-Less Beards”.”

So reads the description of ‘Terror-Less Beards’, a photography project by Cynthia Ghoussoub and this post’s featured  project.

This project is among the firsts of many more that will be featured as part of the revitalization of Hummus For Thought’s Art & Culture section. From now on, I’ll be featuring local artists like Ghoussoub from fields ranging from Photography and Music to Dance and Cinema.

I spoke to Ghoussoub and asked her to introduce herself to the general public.

“I’m a photography student graduating this year, I majored in photography and I plan on having my master’s degree somewhere between arts and photography. I’m preparing for my first solo show titled: “Fragments of Time” and I’m very excited to introduce myself to the public through it! It’s happening in October at KAF gallery in Achrafieh. I’ve participated in several group shows since my first year from the NDU gallery to the Italian embassy and my Terror-Less Beards series is one of the many works I hope I could publish someday.”

“Photography was always a part of my life, but it never occurred to me that I would one day become a photographer. During my undergraduate studies I couldn’t decide upon one major and found myself constantly changing my interest from Communication Arts to Advertising and Marketing. As soon as I found out Photography was offered as new major, I transferred instantly with no hesitation or regrets. My passion for the medium grew as I discovered the creative side of me that I thought never existed.”

“Contrary to what many believe, photography is not just a click of a button. As you will see in the group show that will be taking place at NDU starting June 17th, behind every picture on display there was a process that included extensive research and understanding, two of the many steps a photographer has to take before finalizing their work and clicking the shutter release button. As a fresh graduate, I plan to learn everything I can about photography. Over the years and as my experience grows I hope my work will one day equally inspire others the same way I was inspired by many artists.”