Perla Joe is an Artivist. She activates through her expression.
Her work is interdisciplinary, fusing living, poetry, music, film, performance, and intimate interactions. Her projects are influenced by real-time events shaping her life. Having started in cinematography and production, leading as a casting director has offered her a reflection on people, their emotions, and the notion of systems and authorities - presented through her short film “Zugzwang” (Yale Student Festival, Beirut International Women Film Festival, Berlin Revolution Film Festival,…). Her practice creates movement between the being and their mirrors, the conscious and the unconscious – she defines it as her ongoing creative process -> Wujud - Existence. Perla Joe found nourishment through her writings and singing while preserving a visual archive. These mediums, together, radiate radical thoughts and safely surf existential questions around social dogmas, propagating a sense of possibility and maybe even a responsibility. She has performed and intervened through her original work in several cultural venues across the globe, bringing together a breeze of activism and a sense of creative meaning. During the Lebanese Revolution, Perla Joe held a raw voice and touched people through her ardent presence, raising a humanitarian shout – this got the cause noticed internationally, and her story was featured in the New York Times, Arte, Vogue,... A leading protagonist in the creative documentary “Diaries from Lebanon” premiered this year at the Berlinale and has been circulating worldwide ever since. Perla Joe has been igniting safe spaces for collective and individual reflections, disclosing mental health issues relating to global awareness, wars, and displacement. She’s also been leading and curating creative ateliers as a teaching artist with Materials for the Arts, a New York City Department of Cultural Affairs program. She has been invited to numerous universities and reputed forums in the Levantine, Europe, and the USA (The New School, American University of Beirut, Bard College,…). Her journey advocates and re-questions freedom, love, and consciousness through activations, introspections, and interconnections, using multidisciplinary tools of expression, emphasizing the voice and the being, using sounds and images, giving space to emotions, traumas, and senses while researching society and the notion of authority. A body of work that breaths and honors the present and acknowledges the scars, shedding empathy as a mending tool for environmental wellness.
Her published work:
vocal/visual expression “وجود العهد” (The Mandate), available to stream on all platforms.
Soundtrack -Series: Beirut 6:07 -Ep. Abbas and Fadel - Emmy Awards nominated
"My Land Is Calling," published in May 2021, album Beirut 20/21
Beirut & Beyond Music Support Program, Oslo World, Sacem, and Théâtre de la Ville
"Corrupted Matter" was shared on August 2021 in alignment with the one-year memorial of the Beirut explosion: vocal/visual expression + live intervention
”Orienccitalement de vous connaître” - a meeting between the East and the West
This is a collaboration between Perla Joe and Gary Germanier, discussing life themes from New York to the valleys of Switzerland, remembering Beirut.
Experience available - live format:
“Existence | bla bla bla” = film, live poetry, centering, and discussions
YouTube: www.youtube.com/@perlajoem
Vimeo: vimeo.com/perlajoe
Instagram: @perla.joe
Diego Ibarra Sanchez for the New York Times
After finishing her Art Residencies in Europe in 2022,
Perla Joe then moved from Beirut to New York and has been bridging - ever since.
Email: perla.joe.maalouli@gmail.com
Perla Joe Maalouly
1992 – Beirut, Lebanon / Brooklyn, New York
perla.joe.maalouli@gmail.com
ARTIVIST – POET/SINGER – FILMMAKER/PRODUCER – EDUCATOR
Constantly evolving an existential content and interactions through a creative process based on self-discovery and togetherness encompassing multidisciplinary forms of expression.
ART PUBLICATIONS________________________________________________
2024
. “Diaries from Lebanon”
Main Protagonist - Creative Documentary 110min
. “The generation who dared say no”
poem/zine published -> Digital Free Accessible Form
. “My Land is Calling”
single published via Perla Joe -> Digital Accessible Form
2023
. “The generation who dared say no”
Zine created -> poetry extract from “Existence | bla bla bla”
. Ibrahim Maalouf interviewed by Perla Joe [link]
2022
. Audio Phonic Thematic Installation – Chateau Mercier / Switzerland
“Orienccitalement de vous connaître” - meeting between the East and the West
[link to the podcast]
2021
. “Corrupted Matter”, poem/song/video published in August 2021
A personal/collective project for the one-year memorial of the Beirut Explosion
[link to vocal and visual expression]
. “My Land is Calling”, released in May 2021
Album Beirut 20/21, [link to song]
. Letter to my grandmother
Women from the East, March 2021 [link]
2020
. “Within the Essence”, Révoltes, FIFDH, November, page 72, [link to publication]
. “The Mandate - وجود العهد”, vocal and visual expression, November, [link to music video]
Soundtrack - series: Beirut 6:07, Ep. Abbas and Fadel / Emmy Awards nominated
. “Beirut, now what?”, Medium, 27 August, [link to text]
. “Resistillness”, Medium, 8 June, [link to text]
. “Mindfulness, ignorance and what’s numb in-between” Medium, 11 March, [link to text]
2018
. “All is Beautiful - كلو حلو”, a soulful collaborative project, unreleased [private link to album]
. “Pohibaw - Progression of happiness in black and white”, Digital Publication [link]
2015
. “Zugzwang”, [link to short film]
PERFORMANCES__________________________________________________________
2024
. Poetry and music session with Perla Joe at No Chef in the Kitchen
. “Existence Bla Bla Bla” was performed in Chashama, Manhattan, NYC
. Atelier New York / BAM / The Festival Academy
Invited to activate the space through grounding and poetry at MFTA
. Live music making and jamming at Abracadabra Magic Diner
2023
. “Existence | blab la bla” – video projection/live poetic performance / English edition
Presented in Beirut in times of war and reflection on the revolution, October, Beit El Laffe
Presented in Brooklyn in commemoration of the Beirut explosion, August, Hart House
. Art Installation with Dance Beyond and Abracadabra Magic Food at Olivebridge NYC
. “May our voices be heard” / interactive installation at tildeathnyc [announcement]
. “Bars for thoughts”, poetry and chants
Sleepwalk / Brooklyn [Link]
2022
. Art Installation with Dance Beyond and Abracadabra Magic Food a Granville
. “Existence | bla bla bla”, video projection/live poetic performance
Presented as a farewell in Beirut, June 2022, Onomatopoeia [Link]
Presented at Château de Goutelas as part of the artistic program “Nafas”
Presented at Château Merier, Swiss, as part of the artistic program “Nafas”
. Radio live - “Spécial Liban”” Two spectacles - Reims, Festival “Faraway”, [link to announcement]
. Radio live - “Spécial Liban” Three Spectacles - Lyon, Théâtre de la Croix-Rousse, [link to announcement]
2021
. Live Intervention – Corrupted Matter in repetition – Street Performance
Beirut, August 4th 2021 – Rooftop / City / Sound exposure [Link|
2020
. Beirut Jam Sessions – “Perla Joe / Wujud”, Live Insta Fest [link to announcement]
. Now Beirut – “Perla Joe / In a New Era”, Live acoustic session [link to music video]
2019
. Mar Mikhael, Beirut – “The Revolution of Love” - Public Poetic Intervention
. Mishkal Festival, Masrah Al Madina, Beirut - Live Electronic Oriental Performance
. Tkapart, French Institute, Cairo, Egypt - Live Electronic Oriental Performance [snippet]
. The Corner’s Pub, Amman, Jordan - “Kello Helo”, Live Concert [link to performance]
PANELS, PODCASTS, AND INTERVIEWS______________________________________
2024
. Invited speaker to several talks at the Berlinale Film Festival, Germany
2022
. Panel “How do liberty, rights, and justice interfere in creation?”
March 19, alongside Gabriela Golder, Château de Goutelas
. Radio Interview - Radio Nova Lyon - “A Youth Not Resigned” - Perla Joe / Artivist [link]
2021
. Interview, Perla Joe Maalouli: Corrupted Matter
MTV Lebanon, “Alive” TV show, section “happening”, 2 August 202 [link to interview]
. Podcast, “Autour de Nova à Beyrouth”
Radio Nova Paris, 1 May 2021, [link to podcast]
2020
. Interview, “Génération Demain : Perla Joe Maalouli, la vie en lutte au Liban”
France Inter, 13 October 2020, [link to video]
. Interview, “Being 20 - Perla Joe’s story”
Fawra Media, Open Media Hub, 3 August 2020
. Interview, talk with Lilian Mauthofer and Perla Joe Maalouli, “Thawra”
Art Burst Berlin, 7 July 2020, [link to announcement]
. Panelist, “Women’s face in the revolution”
KYP Community, Beirut, 25 January 2020, [announcement]
. Invited Speaker, International Women’s Day
LibrAdio, Geneva, Switzerland, 8 March 2020 [snippet] [program]
. Panelist, “Locals revolting into a global revolution”
Geneva International Film Festival and Forum on Human Rights (FIFDH) [link]
. Invited Speaker - “Perla Joe Maalouli”
Utopia Podcast, FIFDH, Geneva, 10 March 2020 [link to podcast]
. Interview - Connexion - “Perla Joe Maalouli: Cinéast, artiste, activiste”
Maghreb Orient Express, TV5 France, 13 March 2020 [link to interview]
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT__________________________________________________
2024
. Facilitator with Material for the Arts at the Botanical Gardens for Bloomberg
. Art project participation with Landon Newton at The Socrates Cultural Park / Queens
. Community mural with a prompt and a collective painting at Chashama, NYC
. Facilitator with Material for the Arts at Thrive Festival at Brooklyn Art Council
. Facilitator @ Car Free Earth Day - Time Square - MFTA NYC Dep. of Cultural Affairs
2023
. Family night / creative wellness - lead activation with Material for the Arts
. Healing You Softly - Art and Community
-> “May Our Voices Be Heard”, an interactive display and visual installation by Perla Joe
. Exhibit facilitator - Cope NYC - Yachukang “Dirt Carpet #15”
. Facilitator at Earth Day pop-up at Herbert Von King Park with MFTA
. Teaching artist at PS141 / image and light curated program
15 sessions + photography exhibition
. Art pop-up with MFTA at Green Fest PS32
. Botanical Garden Bronx art pop-up with Materials for the Arts
. Teaching Artist with Material for the Arts at PS55 Queens
. Masked Marvelous with MFTA / curating space and experience of rest and engagement
. Machine Dazzle exhibition launch/spin art facilitator
. Invited speaker Pen America Student Summit at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville
“Free Speech Frontiers Around the World”
. Invited Speaker at Student Summit at UTK
. “Free Expression Around the World” / Spring 2023, February
. Class lecturer on “Artistic Freedom of Expression at Pen America, June
. Invited speaker, NYC Institute / Expression Around the World, July / Bard High School
2022
. Leading an atelier in creative expression and movement
Martinique / Palais Chaillot Paris [Link]
. Invited to speak for 40+ college and high school students from around the US and abroad
Free Expression Advocacy Institute, Pen America / Fall 2022 Brooklyn
. Invited speaker, art, justice, and human rights
Cultural center of Leisure, Boen, March 2022
. Invited speaker, art, justice, and human rights
Volubilis center, Montbrison, March 2022
. Invited speaker “Perrot D’Ablancourt College”
“The Lebanese between crisis and desire for liberty”
With Villa Nova, Reims, 4 February
. Invited speaker “Reims Academy”
“CLEMI - Centre of education of media and information”
With Villa Nova, “Inform yourself to understand the world”, 4 February
. Invited Speaker for an open discussion with students, Vertical Architecture studio
Semester Project: “There will be blood”, American University of Beirut, 14 February 2020
ARTICLES_________________________________________________________________
2023
. Artist at Risk Connection - Perla Joe Maalouly / Relocated [link]
. Sierre, Sortir “Bienvenue chez Gary Germanier” [link]
2022
. Orient-Occident 10E Edition, Sierre, Switzerland [link]
. “Le combat inachevé et continu des féministes de la thaoura ”
L’Orient Le Jour, 22 Octobre 2022 [Link]
. “Building a creative revolution”
Lëtzebuerger Journal, April 2022, [Link]
2021
. “Deux ans après la révolution, le Liban effondré veut se refonder ”
Libération, 13 Octobre 2021, [link]
. “L’autre bataille, dans l’art, de Perla Joe Maalouli”
L’Orient Le Jour, 7 August 2021, [link]
2020 – 2019
. “Thawra”, a feminist movement
48h Neukölln art festival BOOM, Art Burst Berlin, Lilian Mauthofer [link]
. Liban : en ville comme à la campagne, la population appelle à "la révolution"
France Info, 16 January 202, [link to article]
. “Les Libanais écœurés par la descente aux enfers de leur pays”
Le Figaro, 19 October 2020, [link to article]
. “Wie viel kann ein Mensch ertragen?”, Blick TV [link to article]
. “A catalyst for revolution”, Vogue, 6 August 2020, [link to article]
. “Perla Joe, la révolution de l’intérieur”, Le Temps, 7 March 2020, [link to article]
. “In Her Words”, The New York Times, 6 February 2020, [link to article]
. “Gardienne de(s) but(s) de la révolution”
. “Perla Joe Maalouli, gardienne de(s) but(s) de la révoution”
L’Orient Le Jour, 9 December 2019, [link to article]
. “Lebanon slips deeper into crisis”, Reuters, 17 November 2019 [link to article]
ARTIST PORTRAITS, VIDEO/PHOTOS/MAIN CHARACTER_________
2024
. Character in “Les Escales / Témoins” - Society Edi8 - France, Paris
. Mention on International Women’s Day by Mad Solution Film Official
2023
. Portrait by Yasmeen Farah / D.A.D.A.
2019-2024
. Main Protagonist - creative documentary “Diaries from Lebanon”, [link to information]
2020
. Photo Portraits, “Thawra” publication, Lilian Mauthofer, [link to publication]
. “Artistes à Beyrouth: Perla Joe Maalouli, cinéaste et activiste, une des figures de la révolution libanaise”
Radio Television Suisse (RTS), 28 August, [link to interview]
2019
. “Liban le peuple demande des comptes”
Arte TV Caravelle Productions, 19 Novembre, [link to documentary]
. “Singing the Song of the Revolution: Perla Joe Maalouli”
Womena, 23 December, [link to video]
. “The Revolution of Love in Lebanon: Perla Joe Maalouli”
Womena, 26 December, [link to video]
. “30 Artists Inspired by the Thawra”, photo portraits by Monique Chebli
2013
. Beyond the cloth: “The Kafiye Project”, Kaflab, Chady Younes photo portraits
[link to photo portraits]
FILMMAKING - CASTING - PRODUCTION___________________________
2014-2024
. Collection of Visual Archives of people/spaces across the globe
2024
. Producing with Moonage Event Production for FORA 2024
. Ongoing filming for Materials for the Art / Documentary 2025
. Projection of Perla Joe’s short films at Chashama NYC, Manhattan
. Filming Emel Mathlouti during her Album Launch MRA at Public Records NYC
. Filming Haleh Liza Gafori at Joe’s Pub + LPR Poisson Rouge
2023
. Filming Simi Yuyu at the Sound Mind Live
2013 / 2022
. Filming Randy Bloom at Emerge Gallery & Art Space at the Hudson Valley
. Filmmaker (producer, director, videographer, editor, colorist) [link to showcase]
. Director / Director of Photography [link to showcase]
2013 / 2018
. Casting Director (music videos, short films, TV and digital advertising) [link to showcase]
AWARDS and EDUCATION______________________________________
2024 Official Selection @ Festival Cine Libanes / Latin America
2024 Special mention Quality of subject treatment / Geneva International Oriental Film Festival
2024 Champs Elysée Film Festival, Paris, “Diaries from Lebanon” Big Jury Prize / France
2024 Tofifest 22nd Edition / Poland, “Diaries from Lebanon” official selection
2024 DOXA 23rd Edition / Canada, “Diaries from Lebanon” official selection
2024 Hot Doc’s 31st Edition / Canada, “Diaries from Lebanon” official selection
2024 Visions du Réel 55th Edition, “Diaries from Lebanon” official selection
2024 World premiere of “Diaries from Lebanon” / 74th Berlinale / Panorama
2024 Mad Solutions World Sales of “Diaries from Lebanon” [link]
2023 Juror at the Mermaid Parade
2022 Journalism Formation – Annahar Academy
2022 Artist Residency - Château de Goutelas (1 month / France - March)
2022 Artist Residency - Villa Ruffieux (1 month / Switzerland - April)
2021 Beirut & Beyond - Music Support Program, Beirut, Lebanon
2021 Music Copyright and Royalties - Musicians Support Program, Khyam Allami
2019 In The Moment: Conceptual Portraits, Salma El Kashef, Photopia, Cairo
2018 Winner of the editing award, Yale College of Arts, for “Zugzwang” a short satirical film
2017 Completed 12/18 credits towards an M.A. in Filmmaking / Cinematography
2015 Bachelor of Audio/Visual Arts, Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, Lebanon
2010 Associate of Arts Interior Design, Sagesse Technique, Lebanon