The New Syria – The Road Back
In this exhibition, documentary filmmaker and author Michael Graversen portrays Syria in the year following the fall of Assad.
On 8 December 2024, Syria’s long-time dictator Bashar al-Assad was overthrown after a lightning offensive by the rebel group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham. Assad’s fall took much of the world by surprise and has generated cautious optimism and renewed hope that Syria may move toward stability after decades of war and oppression.
Michael Graversen
In the year following the collapse of the regime, documentary filmmaker Michael Graversen travelled to Syria on several occasions to document the country during a historic period of transition. His work has focused primarily on the southwestern Rif Dimashq region and the town of Khan Alsheh—one of the areas most severely affected by bombings and destruction during the civil war.
ABU FADI.
During his stays, Graversen lived with the Noufal family, who play a central role in the local community. The family farm, Beit Noufal, is located in the heart of the town and serves as a natural gathering place for many in everyday life. Graversen has known the family for more than ten years and has a close relationship with Hussein, Afifa, Amir, and the part of the family who fled to Denmark between 2015 and 2017.
In the exhibition, you also meet Taim, whose father died in the notorious Sednaya Prison.
The exhibition presents a series of powerful and intimate portraits of the Noufal family in Syria. Through the images, we encounter their hopes, dreams, and reflections on a new Syria—a country where optimism is slowly taking root, yet where the traces of war, loss, and oppression remain clearly visible.
The New Syria – The Road Back is a story of resilience, belonging, and the hope for a future that can once again be rebuilt.
Sednaya Prison.