Arab Image Foundation

Arab Image Foundation
Name	Arab Image Foundation
Formation	1997
Founders	Jalal Toufic; Fouad Elkoury; Simone Nasser
Type	Non-profit; photographic archive
Headquarters	Beirut, Lebanon
Region served	Arab world; Middle East; North Africa; diaspora

Arab Image Foundation

The Arab Image Foundation is a Beirut-based visual heritage organization established in 1997 that preserves, studies, and disseminates photographic archives from the Arab world, Middle East, and North Africa. Founded by photographers and researchers in the aftermath of the Lebanese Civil War, the organization functions as an archive, research center, conservation lab, and exhibition producer, engaging with collections related to cities such as Beirut, Cairo, Damascus, and Baghdad and with photographers associated with movements like Modernism and institutions such as the Institut du Monde Arabe. It collaborates with museums, universities, and cultural institutions including the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Getty Research Institute, and the Museum of Modern Art.

History

The Foundation emerged from the efforts of founders who were active across networks in Beirut, Paris, and London and who responded to the destruction of archives during the Lebanese Civil War and the aftermath of conflicts in Palestine and Iraq. Early activities linked photographers such as Fouad Elkoury and theorists like Jalal Toufic with collectors in Cairo and Damascus and with institutional partners like the American University of Beirut and the Arab Studies Institute. Throughout the 2000s the institution expanded its holdings through donations and purchases from estates related to figures including Rafael Cheong, Labib Haddad and studio archives from families of Alexandria and Aleppo. During regional upheavals including the Iraq War and the Syrian Civil War, the Foundation prioritized rescue, digitization, and transfer agreements with international archives such as the Bibliothèque nationale de France and the British Library.

Mission and Activities

The Foundation’s mission foregrounds preservation of photographic heritage across the Arab world and promotion of critical study by scholars from institutions like the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, the University of Oxford, and the American University of Cairo. It undertakes conservation campaigns responding to risks posed by conflict in locales including Mosul and Raqqa and establishes partnerships with conservation programs at the Getty Conservation Institute and the French Ministry of Culture. Public engagement includes collaborations with galleries and festivals such as Rencontres d'Arles, the Venice Biennale, and the Sharjah Biennial while academic outreach connects to departments at Columbia University, SOAS University of London, and the University of Chicago.

Collections and Holdings

The Foundation’s holdings encompass studio portraits, vernacular albums, commercial studio negatives, postcard series, and photographic prints spanning the 19th to 21st centuries from regions including Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Palestine, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and the Gulf Cooperation Council. Representative names and studios linked to holdings include archives from photographers associated with Saad Zaghloul-era Egypt, Ottoman-period studios in Beirut and Aleppo, and commercial ateliers in Alexandria and Tripoli. The catalogue includes rare cartes de visite, lantern slides, glass plate negatives, and gelatin silver prints connected to personalities such as King Faisal II-era Iraq, colonial administrators documented by photographers tied to the Suez Canal Company, and migration records involving diasporic communities in Marseilles and Manchester.

Exhibitions and Programs

The Foundation organizes thematic exhibitions and touring shows that have appeared at venues including the British Museum, the Institut du Monde Arabe, the Musée d'Orsay, Tate Modern, and regional centers such as the Athr Gallery and the Sursock Museum. Past programs have paired photographic materials with curators and scholars like Okwui Enwezor, Christy Lange, and Toufic-affiliated researchers for projects addressing urban transformation in Cairo, memory in Beirut, transnational circulation between Alexandria and Istanbul, and colonial visualities tied to the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon. Public programs include workshops with organizations such as Dawra and residency exchanges with institutions like the Van Abbemuseum and the Sharjah Art Foundation.

Research, Conservation, and Education

Research projects produce catalogues, critical essays, and databases used by scholars at the Getty Research Institute, Princeton University, and the University of Pennsylvania. Conservation initiatives employ techniques developed in collaboration with the Centre de Conservation du Livre and training modules co-curated with the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property. Educational programming targets students and archivists through internships linked to the American University of Beirut, professional seminars for conservators from Amman to Tunis, and online resources shared with partners like the Digital Public Library of America and the European Research Council-funded networks.

Governance and Funding

The Foundation operates as a non-profit governed by a board composed of curators, photographers, and scholars affiliated with institutions such as the Getty Foundation, the Arab Fund for Arts and Culture, and the Prince Claus Fund. Funding sources combine private donations, grants from entities like the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, project support from the European Union cultural programs, and cooperative agreements with museums including the Museum of Islamic Art and the Louvre. Strategic partnerships have included memoranda with universities such as Harvard University and technical support from conservation laboratories in Paris and London.

Category:Archives in Lebanon Category:Photography organizations Category:Non-profit organizations based in Lebanon