Sea Side Village, 2026

About LAMIA LABBAN

Lamia Labban (born in Beirut) is a Lebanese contemporary artist based in California. Labban obtained her BA in Fine Arts from the Lebanese American University, Beirut, and her Master's in Education from Framingham State University, Massachusetts.

Lamia’s works that exceed 200 canvases are nostalgic stories that she heard and read. She has been fortunate to see Beirut through the eyes of her late father, who is the inspiration for her recent collection, “My Nostalgia to Beirut.”

She has been featured in numerous exhibitions in Lebanon, Canada, the United States of America, and the United Kingdom.

Lamia Labban has given talks at different institutions and lately at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Columbia University in New York, where she spoke on Art, Beauty, and Aesthetics. Lamia takes pride in her Arab heritage and continues to honor a culture and be the first Lebanese artist that paint the life of the Beiruty people and write biligual short stories about her paintings.

Website: https://lamialabban.com

Instagram: lamia_labban

Facebook: Lamia Labban

ARTIST STATEMENT

It is, indeed, a seaside village, lovingly protected by its own people.

I recently read a story regarding the origin of its name (a narrative that now dominates the discourse of most of its current inhabitants) in which the *Mukhtar*, Muhammad Shuqair, begins his story by declaring that this is the true story.

According to Mr. Shuqair’s historical account, long ago, a boat carrying a foreign mission sank off the coast of Ain Mreisseh. Of all its passengers, only a single nun survived, managing to reach the shore right at the site of the well-known spring. The local inhabitants rescued her and gave her shelter in a hut, where she began teaching their children the basics of reading and writing. Thus, the name began to circulate among the locals as "Ain al-Rayyisa"(the eye of the mistress), named after the nun, a designation that eventually evolved into "Ain Mreisseh."