ETEL ADNAN’s (1925–2021) widely-acclaimed work was shaped by a constant immersion in new contexts and cultures. Born in Beirut to a Greek mother and father from Damascus, she grew up in an extraordinary multicultural environment. A student of philosophy in Beirut and Paris, she moved to the US in 1955 to attend Berkeley and Harvard, and taught philosophy in the San Francisco Bay Area from 1958–72. There she began to paint, deeply inspired by her encounters with the surrounding nature. Adnan returned to Beirut in 1972 to work as a cultural editor for two daily newspapers. Fleeing the civil war, she resettled in California in 1977, making Sausalito her home, with frequent stays in France.

ETEL ADNAN’s (1925–2021) widely-acclaimed work was shaped by a constant immersion in new contexts and cultures. Born in Beirut to a Greek mother and father from Damascus, she grew up in an extraordinary multicultural environment. A student of philosophy in Beirut and Paris, she moved to the US in 1955 to attend Berkeley and Harvard, and taught philosophy in the San Francisco Bay Area from 1958–72. There she began to paint, deeply inspired by her encounters with the surrounding nature. Adnan returned to Beirut in 1972 to work as a cultural editor for two daily newspapers. Fleeing the civil war, she resettled in California in 1977, making Sausalito her home, with frequent stays in France.

ETEL ADNAN’s (1925–2021) widely-acclaimed work was shaped by a constant immersion in new contexts and cultures. Born in Beirut to a Greek mother and father from Damascus, she grew up in an extraordinary multicultural environment. A student of philosophy in Beirut and Paris, she moved to the US in 1955 to attend Berkeley and Harvard, and taught philosophy in the San Francisco Bay Area from 1958–72. There she began to paint, deeply inspired by her encounters with the surrounding nature. Adnan returned to Beirut in 1972 to work as a cultural editor for two daily newspapers. Fleeing the civil war, she resettled in California in 1977, making Sausalito her home, with frequent stays in France.