Tasweer opens ‘Frame and Focus Exhibition,’ presenting works by photographers telling stories of identity, memory, and heritage

Tasweer’s Frame and Focus exhibition showcases 12 photographers exploring identity, heritage, community and contemporary life.Tasweer Photography Festival today opened the second edition of Frame and Focus at Al Hosh Gallery, presenting the final projects of 12 photographers who have completed Tasweer’s flagship Frame and Focus Advanced 14-week Photography Course.On view until 5 October, the exhibition features documentary photography, portraiture, and conceptual image-making shaped by each participant’s cultural background and personal experience to present intimate perspectives on place, community, and contemporary life.“Frame and Focus speaks to a wider ambition for photography in Qatar and the region: to give photographers the space, guidance, and visibility to take their practice further and reach new audiences,” Khalifa Al Obaidly, Director of Tasweer, said.“By investing in artistic development and creating platforms for work to be seen and discussed, Tasweer is helping shape a more connected photographic community and opening new possibilities for the voices and stories emerging from the region.” The programme is delivered by Tasweer in partnership with the Qatar Preparatory School (QPS), The VII Foundation and Al Hosh Gallery.“Frame and Focus shows the learning outcomes achieved when photographers receive structured guidance and opportunities to cultivate their visual voice. Through instruction, critique, and experimentation, participants were challenged to think more critically and make images with greater clarity and purpose,” Deputy Director of Image and Narrative Practices of Qatar Preparatory School Alanoud Al Buainain said.“The exhibition demonstrates how programmes like Frame and Focus can develop creative potential into a sustained photographic practice,” she added.The exhibition was co-curated by The VII Foundation and Abdulla Faisal Al Khalaf.“Frame and Focus affirms our belief that telling your own story is a human right—and that education in visual storytelling can be an act of resistance. At a time of turmoil and competing narratives, these artists bring rigor, empathy, and deeply personal perspectives to questions of belonging, memory, and resilience,” Ziyah Gafić, Director of The VII Foundation, Sarajevo, said.“Their work marks not only the culmination of a program, but an important step toward a sustainable photographic community in Qatar and the wider region,” Gafić added.“Each photographer in this year’s Frame and Focus brings a distinct visual language, shaped by personal experience and strengthened through the learning, experimentation, and creative exchange fostered by the Frame and Focus Photography course. Together, these individual perspectives form a rich and layered exploration of home, faith, family, memory, and belonging, alongside reflections on landscape, heritage, and community,” Al Khalaf said.Several projects in the exhibition draw on personal histories and connections to place, including Maja Bačić’s “I SEA,” Fatema Ahmad Al-Doh’s “I, Myself, Am a Country,” and Abdullatif Ahmad Alnaemi’s “The First Chalk Line.”Abdullatif Jaidah’s “The House of God” reflects on the role of the mosque as a space of prayer, hope, and continuity, while Alwaleed Alkhaja’s “And this, too, shall pass” and Burair Ali Alkishri’s “The Rose” examine how traditions, rituals, and community shape everyday life and collective memory.Themes of home, migration, and identity also feature prominently through portraiture, documentary photography, and experimental visual storytelling, with several photographers considering how individuals and communities preserve heritage across generations, navigate displacement, and maintain connections to culture and place. From Christophe Buffet’s “Basateen Al-Freej (Gardens of the Neighbourhood),” which documents the transformation of a former educational site into a community-centred space, to Jhenny Marian Laya Perez’s “FULAN” and Jaili Hajo’s “We Too Have Wings,” the works reveal the many ways belonging can be experienced, remembered, and reimagined.Together, the projects offer a nuanced portrait of contemporary life in Qatar and beyond, reflecting the diverse perspectives, histories, and lived experiences that shape the region today.Meanwhile, Tasweer will host the Frame and Focus Exhibition Tour & Artist Panel Talk at Al Hosh Gallery on Sunday, 6 September, at 3:00pm.Open to all, the event invites audiences to connect with works from the exhibit through the perspectives of artists, mentors, and programme leaders.The session will underscore the value of photography education and show how practice can reveal personal experiences, cultural narratives, and contemporary issues.The programme is delivered by Tasweer in partnership with the Qatar Preparatory School (QPS), The VII Foundation and Al Hosh Gallery.Frame and Focus is on view at Al Hosh Gallery until 5 October, Sunday to Wednesday, from 10:00am to 8:00pm; Thursday and Saturday, from 10:00am to 10:00pm; and Friday, from 3:00pm to 10:00pm.Presented as part of the Qatar Creates Fall/Winter 2026–27 season, the exhibition joins a wider programme of exhibitions and events that reflect Qatar’s ongoing commitment to cultural exchange, creative dialogue, and global connection.