Political cartoonist and ‘icon of freedom in the Arab world’ Ali Ferzat has spent decades satirizing Arab rulers and authorities in more than 15,000 caricatures, offering an acute visual commentary on the brutal practices of the Syrian Ba’ath regime.

In 2001, Ferzat launched the satirical newspaper, Al-Domari (“Lamp-lighter”) which was forced to close by the Ba'ath authorities in 2003, and his cartoons have been banned in several Arab countries. For denouncing the corruption and abuses of Bashar Al-Assad’s rule, he was attacked in August by masked gunmen, who broke his hands as a warning.

In 2011, he was awarded the Press Freedom Prize by Reporters Without Borders and Le Monde. He has been nominated for Index on Censorship’s 2012 award for artists, filmmakers and writers whose work asserts artistic freedom and battles against repression and injustice.

Ali Ferzat

Mica Gallery

20th March to 29th March 2012 

Monday to Friday: 10am - 6pm
Saturdays: 11am - 6pm (strictly by appointment only)

Mica Gallery, Studio 2, 259A Pavilion Road, Sloane Square, SW1X 0BP

Reel Syria

Reel Festivals returns for its fifth year with Reel Syria 2012,in association with Mosaic Initiative for Syria, supporting Syrian artists and showcasing Syrian culture to a UK audience. 

Mosaic Initiative for Syria is a not-for-profit organization contributing to the humanitarian relief effort in Syria and Syrian refugee camps in neighbouring countries. It is currently supported by Firefly International.

Reel Festivals is a Firefly International project. Firefly is a charity which breaks down barriers through shared creative and cultural dialogue - www.fireflyinternational.org.

Reel Syria was made possible by the generous support of the British Council.