To Tie A Knot

About the exhibition:

During my Linda Lee Alter Fellowship, I was drawn to work with other creatives from a part of the Southwest Asian region called Bilad al-Sham (aka “the Levant”). As the Founder/Director of the artist-run collective, Batikh Batikh, my curatorial practice centers on bringing South West Asian North African (SWANA) cinema to Philadelphia, and working with local SWANA women and LGBTQ+ artists to host their first solo exhibitions. In collaboration with other contemporary Arab creatives, Naz Khoury and Samar Dahleh, who share similar interests in history, craft and environmentalism, this fellowship brings programming to Da Vince Art Alliance that spotlights the influence of Bilad al-Sham and women on craft.

In his first solo exhibition, To Tie A Knot, Naz Khoury uses fibers and glass to connect the Appalachian Mountain region to Bilad al-Sham. Both geographic areas are connected to the origins of glass and glassmaking. Khoury’s relationship to glass is steeped in his heritage and interest in history. He has tied thousands of knots over the summer to calm his mind in a fast-paced world and reflect on the nostalgia and childhood memories tied to these different places. His practice is influenced by how glassblowing was arguably invented by Syrian craftsmen who worked on the Shami coast. It was industrialized and spread throughout the Mediterranean by Phoenician traders, Khoury’s ancestors. The Appalachian region, on the other hand, is used to harvest raw materials for glass blowing. Both regions are sadly also connected through environmental disaster, as we witness Israel commit ecoterrorism in Palestine and Lebanon, supported by funds that should be used to aid domestic areas disrupted by floods and hurricanes. 

Through visual art and workshops, my fellowship also focuses on the archive, traditional craft and cultural preservation. The texture of Khoury’s sculptures is created using lace molds and references the regalia of Lebanese Christian women 100s of years ago. Khoury views his work as contributing to a queer SWANA archive that will endure into the future, while drawing on the traditions of past generations. On October 16th, local instructor Samar Dahleh will host a workshop and presentation focusing on the practice of Palestinian embroidery (Tatreez). Dahleh will give context on tatreez’s origin and highlight the influence of Palestinian women’s labor on the craft. New and experienced practitioners can work together in a “tatreez circle.” Tatreez circles were traditional spaces for women to socialize and create marriage dowries, and each town in Palestine has its own embroidery motif. Across from Khoury’s neon pieces, which are inspired by these tatreez motifs and Rural American cross-stitch patterns, practitioners will reference the traditions of Palestine and carry these fibers traditions with them.

To Tie A Knot will be on view in Gallery 1 at Da Vinci Art Alliance October 1 through October 19 with an opening reception on October 4th from 4-7pm.

ABOUT THE Curator

Sarah Trad is a Lebanese-American artist working in film, photography, curation, computer art and photography, whose practice focuses on Arab history, queerness, disability, climate justice, and alternate realities. Raised in New York’s Adirondack Mountains, Sarah can trace her interest in land stewardship back to her great-grandmother and aunts, who used vacant suburban lots to farm Levantine produce after immigrating to the United States. Trad is a recipient of Syracuse University’s Engagement Fellowship, the PlySpace Residency Fellowship, Velocity Fund and Leeway Foundation Art and Change Grant. She has collaborated with organizations such as Spectacle Theater, Asian Arts Initiative, Twelve Gates Arts and Sharjah Art Foundation. Her work has been screened at the Antimatter Media Art Festival, Everson Museum of Art, Burlington City Arts, and Currents New Media.  

Batikh Batikh (BB) is a nomadic pop-up cinema and gallery that rents spaces to bring SWANA cinema to Philadelphia and exhibit solo exhibitions of local emerging women and LGBTQ+ artists. Based on a decolonial and anti-capitalist art model, all art is free to the public and featured artists are paid. Founded in 2022 by Lebanese-American filmmaker and curator, Sarah Trad, BB addresses the lack of SWANA programming and anti-zionist policies in the art sector. BB’s mission centers providing resources and representation to SWANA audiences, by giving back to the community through mutual aid, centering marginalized women and queer narratives and fostering the practices of local emerging creatives.

ABOUT THE FEATURED ARTIST

Naz Khoury is a mixed-media artist from the millenia-old cedars of Lebanon. He received his BA from Tyler School of Art in 2025, and continues to reside in Philadelphia, PA. With a strong interest in the legacies left by memory and archive, he plays with hot glass, neon, various moldmaking processes, fibers, and sculpture. Naz is a 2025 Horn Scholarship recipient from the Penland School of Craft and a 2022 Creative Arts, Research, and Scholarship (CARAS) grant recipient from Temple University. His work has been shown at the William Way LGBT Center, Temple Contemporary, Stella Elkins Gallery, and Off The Wall Gallery.

ABOUT The Linda Lee Alter Track

Created to honor Lee Alter, a renowned Philadelphia artist, collector, philanthropist, and founder of the Leeway Foundation, the Linda Lee Alter track annually provides an opportunity for one queer artist/curator each year to create an exhibition and related programming that explores connection, transformation, liberation, and LGBTQ+ narratives.