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SOORA ⭒ Number 01 ⭒ Kelly Shami
SOORA (صورة) is the word for “picture” or “image” in Levantine Arabic. This wordless periodical functions as an evolving visual anthology, with each issue curated by a single artist. Through an assemblage of found, made, and appropriated images—ranging from the iconic to the overlooked—it constructs an intimate portrait of the artist and the cultural landscape they inhabit. The absence of text invites a more free, intuitive engagement with the work, framing each issue as both a personal archive and a document of its time. Soora reflects the way we consume media today: in constant, chaotic bursts, mirroring the relentless flood of content in the digital age, but with the beauty and analog nature of print.Kelly Shami is a first-generation Syrian-Lebanese artist from New Jersey, now based in Los Angeles. Rooted in painting, her autobiographical works blend 2000s-era aesthetics, Arab-American identity, and visual cues from her family’s jewelry background. Each composition becomes a vivid site of memory and cultural reflection. With a foundation in New York’s magazine world, Shami conceptualized this inaugural issue by drawing inspiration from Newspaper, the experimental periodical published by Steve Lawrence in New York City between 1968 and 1971 featuring artists.
11x15 inches
24 pages
Newspaper
$25