Opened in 2015 beside Damascus University’s Faculty of Fine Arts, the state-run National Center for Visual Arts (1300 m² of galleries and a 900 m² workshop hall) is Syria’s largest purpose-built space for modern art. Director Ghaith al-Akhras declares its aim is to “revive the creative visual art scene” post-war, staging museum-scale retrospectives, emerging-artist solos and cross-disciplinary labs in sculpture, engraving, film and digital media. Lectures, youth programs and residencies extend its reach nationwide.