In June of every year, hundreds of institutions, archivists, and practitioners celebrate International Archives Week (IAW), raising awareness about the importance of archival documents and records, and showcasing the rare and extraordinary objects in their care.

For this year’s edition of IAW, which also marks the 25th anniversary of the founding of the Arab Image Foundation, the AIF is collaborating with Beirut DC on the exhibition 𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘗𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦: 𝘙𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘉𝘦𝘪𝘳𝘶𝘵, on view at Mina Image Center from 11 June to 20 July 2022. Curated by Hady Zaccak, the exhibition journeys through the city of Beirut through a montage of scenes assembled from 50 films produced between 1935 and 1975, and features still images of Beirut from the collections of the Arab Image Foundation.

In situ, the AIF is organising a series of exciting talks and screenings from 10-20 June, paying tribute to the notion of home in all its rhapsodies.

𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲:
https://www.dropbox.com/.../AIF%20IAW%20schedule%202022...

More than a physical space, the home is the constellation of memories and experiences that shapes our being, and colours our understanding of the world. We launch our International Archives Week programme in Beirut on Friday 10 June with a special display of photographic objects centered on vernacular and family photographs. Glass plates, stereoscopic views, paper prints, negatives, and albums will be on display to reveal the intimacy and domesticity of the family home, and how these notions can be extended to entire nations.

𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗱𝗼𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗻 𝗼𝗻 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝟭𝟬 𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝟭𝟭:𝟬𝟬 𝘁𝗼 𝟭𝟵:𝟬𝟬, and we welcome you to visit our premises and learn more about our current projects and archival practices. You will get to meet the AIF team at work in their different labs!

On view are some of the very first collections acquired by the AIF, but also the most recent ones, including the Radwan Mattar, Cold Cuts, and Aline Manoukian collections, reflecting the evolution of the foundation’s collecting practices over the past 25 years, and the breadth and scope of the thematics it addresses.

For those who wish to support the foundation, a number of our publications will be on sale, and we will offer discounted prices for researchers, artists, and cultural institutions, if the full amount cannot be paid in support of the foundation. These include the three-volume publication 𝘉𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘝𝘢𝘯 𝘓𝘦𝘰, which was published in December 2021. Co-published by the Arab Image Foundation and Archive Books, 𝘉𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘝𝘢𝘯 𝘓𝘦𝘰 is authored by Karl Bassil in collaboration with Negar Azimi and Katia Bojadjian. Other available titles include 𝘏𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘌𝘭 𝘔𝘢𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘪: 𝘚𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘰 𝘗𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘦𝘴 (2004); 𝘏𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘌𝘭 𝘔𝘢𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘪: 𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘴 (2007); 𝘈 𝘓𝘦𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘈𝘳𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘷𝘦 (2015); 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦́𝘦𝘴 𝘗𝘩𝘰𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴: 𝘓𝘦 𝘑𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘥𝘶 𝘋𝘰𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘶𝘳 𝘊𝘰𝘵𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘥 (2017); and 𝘉𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥: 𝘏𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘳 𝘚𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘢𝘯 (2015).

In the framework of IAW, and in line with our mission to share knowledge around our archival practices, the 𝗔𝗜𝗙 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼𝘀 𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗱𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗼𝗰𝘂𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀. Online Zoom sessions will follow to allow users a platform for questions and learning relevant to their line of work and interests. Our hope is that these resources, and Q&A sessions will support institutions and independent practitioners better care for their archival collections and benefit from the foundation’s experience. These videos and learning sessions, which are also part of the foundation’s 25th anniversary programme, will be made available online upon request in the second week of June.

𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀, 𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗸: https://forms.gle/NQc7ZcQB1VSBPsdE6

𝗟𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝗶𝗴 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀: 𝗔 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗔𝗹-𝗛𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗸
When: Thursday 16 June, 17:00
Where: Arab Image Foundation, Zoghby building, 4th floor, Gemmayzeh.
Spaces limited, booking required.
Book your place here: https://ihjoz.com/events/6575

In the framework of International Archives Week, we are delighted to announce a new collaboration with historian Charles Al-Hayek (@heritage_and_roots on Instagram), exploring different perspectives on history through images. For our opening talk, Charles will select 25 images in the custody of the Arab Image Foundation, connecting them to the broader social and historical contexts in which they are embedded. Primarily made up of family photographs, these intimate images often act as a microcosm of society at large.

𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀* 𝗛𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗕𝗲𝗶𝗿𝘂𝘁’𝘀 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗣𝗮𝘀𝘁: 𝗔 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗠𝗼𝗵𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗱 𝗔𝗯𝗱𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗶
When: Friday 17 June, 17:00
Where: Arab Image Foundation, Zoghby building, 4th floor, Gemmayzeh.
Spaces limited, booking required.
Book your place here: https://ihjoz.com/events/6567

Years in the making, 𝘊𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘊𝘶𝘵𝘴’ fourth edition, titled 𝘛𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘔𝘦 𝘓𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘔𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳: 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴* 𝘏𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘉𝘦𝘪𝘳𝘶𝘵’𝘴 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘰𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘗𝘢𝘴𝘵, was recently launched. Celebrating the stories and lives of trans* women, the journal is also available online for free in an active effort to make this public archive accessible to everyone. It brings together photographs of the trans* community in Beirut in the 1980s and the 1990s, which are now in the custody of the Arab Image Foundation in what is arguably the first such photographic archive of the queer community in the Arab region. Housed at the AIF, the Cold Cuts collection brings together 206 prints and polaroids which 𝘊𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘊𝘶𝘵𝘴 founder, Mohamad Abdouni, entrusted to the foundation in 2021.

In this informal gathering at our premises, Abdouni and AIF collections researcher Omar Thawabeh discuss the challenges and intricacies of documenting this valuable collection, and the ways in which language and imagery can be used to embolden communities.

𝘛𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘔𝘦 𝘓𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘔𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳: 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴* 𝘏𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘉𝘦𝘪𝘳𝘶𝘵’𝘴 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘰𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘗𝘢𝘴𝘵 will be available for purchase on the day of the talk.

𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘀
When: Monday 20 June, 17:00
Where: Arab Image Foundation, Zoghby building, 4th floor, Gemmayzeh.
Spaces limited, booking required.
Book your place here: https://ihjoz.com/events/6574

We conclude our International Archives Week programme with the screening of four short films centered around the city of Beirut. Wavering between the documentary and the speculative, these works paint a portrait of a city that is fickle and gritty all at once.

With films by Vartan Avakian [𝘚𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘞𝘢𝘷𝘦 / 𝘓𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘞𝘢𝘷𝘦 (2009); 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘝𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘰 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 (2015)], Jalal Toufic [𝘚𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘍𝘢𝘤𝘦 (2000)], and Jalal Toufic and Graziella Rizkallah Toufic [𝘈𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘵 137 𝘵𝘰 𝘔𝘢𝘱 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘋𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘦 (2001)].

Following the screening is a moderated conversation and Q&A with Jalal Toufic.