Zena Assi was born in Lebanon in 1974. She completed her education at l'Academie Libanaise des Beaux Arts (ALBA), after which she worked in the advertising industry. She then taught in various universities. 

Assi’s art is influenced by the interactions and clashes that arise between individuals and their surrounding socio-political environment. She expresses these ideas through a variety of mediums and methods, such as installations, drawings, etchings, experimental animations, sculptures and, predominantly, paintings. Assi's artistic vision focuses on themes such as migration and nostalgia. 

The artist portrays cityscapes, intriguing still-lifes and bouquets composed of strange objects. She is also famous for her series of portraits inspired by Egon Schiele’s style. 

Assi’s works are housed in various public and private collections:  ALBA in Beirut; Barjeel Art Foundation in Sharjah and Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris.

She has been part of solo as well as collective exhibitions in Europe, the Middle East and the United States of America: Artsawa Gallery (Dubai UAE), Espace Claude Lemand (Paris France), Cairo Biennale (Cairo Egypt), Katzen Arts Center of American University (Washington D.C. USA), Rebirth Beirut Exhibition Center (Beirut Lebanon), Art13 & Art14 London Fair (London UK), Art Paris (Paris France), IWM Imperial War Museum (London UK), IMA Institut du Monde Arabe (Paris France) and the 57th Venice Art Biennale (Venice Italy).

This oil on canvas work by Zena Assi frames Beirut through a forest of wires and steel, caught between crumbling layers of infrastructure. In leaving the sky white, the artist prompts questions about continuity and safety. Assi says about portraying Beirut: “one should take into consideration the layers of its history and heritage, the complexity of its social organizations, the diversity of its cultures, and the peculiarity of its universality in an attempt to finally convey the soul and spirit of its cityscapes” - Zena Assi. 

Assi’s city is caught behind bars, its fissures and cracks sometimes bleeding red. Through the bars the intricate and fascinating reality of Beirut is conveyed to the viewer.