With L’arbre à paroles, Syrian artist Dino Ahmed Ali proposes an in situ creation that combines the memory of the place, collective participation and visual experience. It invites visitors to discover the Ksar through the eyes and words of those who live there today.

The aim of this Land Art residency is to give the Ksar El Ferch site a cultural and artistic status, and to enhance the value of this emblematic local heritage. Near the entrance, an olive tree that has dried out due to the aridity of the region stands, transformed into a support for collective memory. On its branches, calligraphic ribbons move in the wind. The ribbons were created in collaboration with local residents and craftsmen, during meetings devoted to the history and future of the Ksar and the region it represents. Each local chose two words, one linked to the past, the other looking to the future. The result is a mosaic of voices and points of view that tells the story of the community’s relationship with its land.

These encounters, hosted by artist Dino Ahmad Ali and his collaborators, are recorded to give rise to a series of podcasts, making it possible to extend the work and share these testimonies with a wider audience.

Behind the tree, a structure made of 190 wooden slats painted in primary colors was created collectively during participatory workshops. This element completes the installation and creates a visual interaction with the tree. When the visitor looks through these colored lines, an optical effect appears: the colors are superimposed on the branches, producing a vibrating or pixellated impression that changes according to the light, wind and position of the viewer. This visual effect gives the tree a new presence, as if it were reanimated by contact with movement and color.

A Syrian artist trained at the Damascus Fine Arts School, Dino Ahmad Ali’s practice is based on optical illusion and visual experimentation. His works – installations, anamorphoses, street art, interactive tableaux and digital creations – explore the limits of perception. At the heart of his approach, interaction with the public becomes a central element, generating a genuine sensory and kinetic dialogue between the work and the viewer.

Guest artist: Dino Ahmad Ali (Visual artist) https://ahmadali.fr/

In collaboration with Nidhal Chemengui and Wael Bouargoub (Mediation with local residents and podcast recording)