Sami Khatib

Prof. Dr. Sami Khatib is a Professor for Political and Social Aesthetics at Karlsruhe University of Arts and Design since spring 2025, where he also serves as Vice-Rector for International Affairs and Cooperations. His academic career spans teaching at institutions including the American University of Beirut, American University in Cairo, Leuphana University of Lüneburg, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, and Free University of Berlin. His research focuses on critical theory from the Global South, aesthetic theory, and continental philosophy.

Key publication projects include the 2025 title Real Abstraction: The Birth of Aesthetics from the Spirit of Capitalism, and co-editing the 2025 posthumous collection of Irving Wohlfarth’s essays on Walter Benjamin. His 2013 monograph Teleology without End explores Benjamin’s reconfiguration of messianic thought.

Khatib’s work bridges traditional arts with media technology, and he contributes to international academic collaborations through his administrative leadership. Current research trends show focus on capitalist systems, theological materialism, and critical theory methodologies.