Zena el Khalil was born in London and currently lives and works in Beirut.
For her work she makes use of various forms of expressions, such as painting, performance and installation, with mixed media techniques that include collage and writing. Her art mainly deals with the subject of violence and war: soldiers, both men and women, and civilians are decorated with plastic flowers, glitter, toy soldiers, fabrics, jewels and other found objects she has collected in Beirut.
Besides having exhibited her work internationally in many solo and group exhibitions, el Khalil has remained active promoting and representing emerging Arab artists through several cultural projects.
During the 2006 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the artist started a blog (beirutupdate.blogspot.com) and gained international attention from the Press, reporting her personal experience of the 33-day long “siege” and the testimonies of the people around her.
