Sara Shamma: World Civil War Portraits, The Old Truman Brewery

A powerful new exhibition of work from Syria's most famous artist, Sara Shamma, reminds us of the impact of the Syrian conflict across the world. Shamma's work is courageous and filled with sharp criticism of a war that has left 2.5 million Syrians living as refugees in Lebanon. The art world in war-torn Syria is also a curious topic that we rarely hear about. But with the Iraq Pavilion at the Venice Biennale 2015 and the British museum buying up Syrian works of 'uprising art', there is clearly a demand to understand more about these forgotten artists. 
Who is Sara Shamma?
Shamma has had a tumultuous life. In 2012, she fled Damascus and her husband after a car bomb exploded outside her apartment and made her home in Lebanon with her children. Shortlisted for the BP portrait prize in 2004, Shamma has become a force to be reckoned with in the west.
Sara Shamma London exhibition
Over in east London, StolenSpace Gallery stages a new major exhibition of Sara Shamma paintings at The Old Truman Brewery where the haunting faces of the deceased radiate their stories of human loss and cities torn apart by violence.