Al Rawiya

Ruwan Teodros – Story 1 | Tanya

To see Beirut through Tanya Traboulsi’s lens is to fall in love with it. Tanya frequently goes on photo walks, sometimes alone, oftentimes with others, and provides an intimate portrayal of a city that – for all its problems – continues to lure people in. Her fierce devotion to the fractured city, and its people, is clear.

 

Like many other Lebanese, Tanya was forced to leave Beirut with her family in 1983 due to the outbreak of the civil war, saying “I spent 13 years abroad, unrooted and ruptured, dreaming of Beirut and the moment of my return.” 

 

Through her photographs, she takes you to the places, and people, most special to her. Whether it is images of deep blue sea and the waning sun, or the playful smiles of the young boys that haunt Rawche or Dalieh, you will inevitably find yourself falling in love with the Beirut of Tanya’s dreams – and isn’t that a wonderful place to be?

Photos from the series “Beirut, recurring dream” [2021 – ongoing]. Courtesy of Tanya Traboulsi

من خلال عدسة تانيا طرابلسي، ستقع في حب بيروت. تقوم تانيا بجولات تصويرية في المدينة، أحيانًا بمفردها وأحيانًا بصحبة آخرين، حيث تقدم رؤية حميمية لمدينة رغم كل مشاكلها، ما زالت تجذب الناس إليها. وفاء تانيا الشديد لهذه المدينة المتصدعة وسكانها واضح بشكل جلي.

 

مثل العديد من اللبنانيين الآخرين، أُجبرت تانيا على مغادرة بيروت مع عائلتها في عام 1983 بسبب اندلاع الحرب الأهلية، وقالت: “قضيت 13 عامًا في الخارج، بلا جذور وممزقة، أحلم ببيروت ولحظة العودة إليها.”

 

من خلال صورها، تأخذك تانيا إلى الأماكن والأشخاص الأقرب إلى قلبها. سواء كانت صور البحر الأزرق العميق والشمس الغاربة، أو ابتسامات الصبية المرحين الذين يترددون على الروشة أو الدالية، ستجد نفسك واقعًا في حب بيروت التي تحلم بها تانيا – أليس هذا مكانًا رائعًا للوجود؟

Ruwan Teodros

Ruwan is a Lebanese-Ethiopian copywriter and photographer who splits her time between Lebanon and the United States. With a keen eye for the unnoticed, her focus is on slowing down the pace of her home city, Beirut, capturing fleeting, intimate moments among its people and their environment that might otherwise be lost.

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