Photographing the Past and Future of Lebanon: The Potential History and Visual Afterlives of Beirut’s War-Damaged Buildings

Abstract

Beirut, Lebanon, is a city in constant construction and reconstruction, it seems. After surviving multiple wars, with the Civil War of 1975-1990 as an arguably most impactful example, Beirut has been left with buildings riddled by bullets. That these buildings still stand is incredible, because they have survived not only the material damage of the war but also the various ‘rebuilding’ projects which have taken place since the end of the war, most of which were (and continue to be) headed by private companies such as state-founded Solidere. These buildings are some of the most photographed sites in Beirut; even when they are not the focus, they linger in the background, both physically and figuratively. As a case study, this paper examines the photography of an unfinished, decrepit cinema popularly called “the Egg.” In doing so, this paper seeks to investigate how visual cityscapes create a sense of morale and identity, as well as pasts and futures. The Egg’s afterlife as a ghost of a city that never came to be, drawing on Ariella Aïsha Azoulay’s concept of potential history, troubles conceptions about how public memories and aspirations are negotiated, particularly visually and in the so-called Global South.