THE GALLERY 45
Raya Matta, Cloth 2, 2025 at Behind the Curtain of Resilience group show at The Gallery 45.
The Gallery 45 is a contemporary art and design exhibition space located in a historic building in the heart of Limassol's old town. Dedicated to fostering creativity and dialogue, the gallery presents a diverse program of exhibitions featuring both emerging and established local and international artists and designers. Through its curated shows and collaborative projects, The Gallery 45 aims to connect the public with contemporary artistic practices.
RAYA MATTA
(LB)
Raya Matta is a Lebanese-Greek visual artist living between Beirut and Athens. After attending the French School of Athens, she earned a Master's degree in Architecture from the Academy of Arts in Beirut, where she later founded her art space, The ArtSpot. Her work reflects Lebanon's instability, depicting human figures, cultural rituals, and symbolic everyday objects through sharp, structured compositions influenced by her architectural background.
Her practice unfolds in series: "Crowded" depicts human movement and interaction in moments of panic and uncertainty; "Baggage" explores exile and memory; "Golden Boys" addresses the blinding effects of misused power; while "Cloth" and "Oblivion" examine power dynamics and identity through traditional and everyday clothing and accessories.
Her work has been exhibited in Beirut (Beit Beirut, September 2025; Maya Art Space, March and August 2025), Paris (Espace Bernard Palissy, November 2024), Athens (Entexnon Gallery, November 2024; South Athens Pinacotheque, March 2025), Limassol (Gallery 45, November 2025), Hong Kong (Artbridger at Soho House, March 2026), and Amman (Khuzama Abu Joudeh Gallery, March 2026), and featured in the Al Bahia auction in Qatar.
ALEXANDER CHARRIOL
(US)
Alex Charriol is a multidisciplinary artist whose work examines intimacy, power, and psychological tension through figurative painting. Working primarily in acrylic and pastel, he creates restrained compositions
that draw on cultural memory, domestic imagery, and symbolic interruption to explore how desire and human relationships are shaped by inherited social structures. Born in Hawaii and raised across multiple continents, Charriol’s nomadic upbringing informs his sensitivity to displacement, role playing, and emotional negotiation. He studied at the Parsons School of Design, Tufts University, and the Museum of Fine Arts Boston/Northeastern University, and has established studios in New York and Los Angeles.
