°1967, Brussels. Lives and works in Antwerp.
Charif Benhelima’s photographic work focuses mainly on the search of identity. Despite being deeply autobiographical Benhelima’s work transcends the personal and develops a sociopolitical speech of universal dimension. Through the photography it tackles the themes referring to memories/oblivion, time, space, origin, and the politic aspects of the representation and perception. The work “Semites” is a reflection about his Arabian-Sephardic past. Even as juxtaposed photographs, the identity of portrayed Arabs and Jews may be discernible on the condition that the viewer gets close enough to perceive that the photographs are arranged in two layers (one more advanced than the other) separating the two groups, an allusion to the invisible walls which are dividing people.
Click here to visit his website.
Click here to see his exhibition in Bozar.
Below you can see the In Situ creations of Charif Benhelima at the exhibition in Havana
