Panorama of Tripoli
Above and below are postcards of scenes in Tripoli, Libya from the 1950s, when it was still a kingdom. All of these were distributed by Ediz. Ris. Foto AULA in Tripoli – Rop. vietata.
The King’s Palace
Category Archives: Photography
Islamic law in Syria: the Class of 1925-26
The graduating class surrounding their professors for the University of Syria’s Institute for Arabic Law in 1925-26; for a larger image, click here
The image above shows the graduating class from the University of Syria’s Institute for Arabic Law in 1925-26. Among the professors is Fath Allah ‘Ali Adibe (top row, second from right), a graduate of al-Azhar and the grandfather of Dr. Najwa Adra. He is in the minority of professors sporting beards, although the moustache was clearly a necessity and only one of the scholars has a bare head and he is one of the few with spectacles. What is fascinating is the representation of the students, who are dressed entirely in Western suit and tie. About half have their moustache intact, with one showing a handlebar worthy of a Viennese gentleman. School graduation pictures like these are priceless. Would it not be a worthy project for someone or some school to archive these for the Middle East? Any takers out there?
The professors for the University of Syria’s Institute for Arabic Law in 1925-26; for a larger image, click here
To kiss or not to kiss: Iranian style
A controversial tempest in a samovar erupted last week when Iran’s President Ahmadenijad appeared to kiss the grieving mother of Hugo Chavez at the state funeral for the Venezuelan leader. The lips do touch the face of Chavez’s mother, but the context suggests an embrace of consolation rather than anything untoward. To the extent this innate human reaction of sympathy is something to be forbidden as unIslamic, religion becomes a mockery. The Muhammad presented in the Sira was a man of compassion. I suspect he would not approve of those who take the charge of modesty to such an extreme as to deny the most basic of positive human instincts.
But the controversy over this alleged “kiss” reminded me of an image from a different time in Iran. I have a booklet (Iran Today) issued by the Imperial Iranian Government in the early 1960s, when Lyndon Johnson was still vice-president. This is pure propaganda for the then-young Shah’s Iran. Opposite the Table of Contents, and thus the first image in the booklet, is a full-page spread with the caption: “His Imperial Majesty the Shah meets members of the Iranian community in Istanbul, Turkey.” You will note that this image is the classic politician baby kissing. Obviously, this was seen as a positive side of the ruler who loves his people. What a difference half a century makes in the interpretation of a kiss.
The propaganda aspect of the booklet is most evident in the unflinching praise for the Shah, as can be seen below:
“Their Imperial Majesties the Shah and Queen Farah greet distinguished guests from the United States: Vice President and Mrs. Lyndon Johnson and their daughter, who visited Iran last summer.
Yemenite Jews: A Photographic Exhibition
An exhibition of photographs of Yemenite Jews is on display from February 1- April 30, 2013 at the Katz Snyder Gallery in San Francisco. The entire collection can be seen online.
Israeli photojournalist Naftali Hilger’s breathtaking photos of Yemen reveal a nation and a landscape lost in time. His intimate portraits of the isolated Jewish communities of Yemen, taken over a period of 20 years, have been most recently seen in a widely heralded exhibition at the Museum of Islamic Art in Jerusalem.
Hilger’s life-altering love affair with the mysteries of Yemen began in 1987. Over six subsequent trips from 1987 through 2008, he documented not only one of the most ancient communities in the Jewish diaspora, but Muslim Yemen as well – its markets, its landscapes and the fascinating architecture of Sana’a and the rural villages.
A Viennese Tour to Egypt in 1912
While in Vienna last week for a conference, I was able to visit the Museum für Völkerkunde and see several of the current exhibits there. One of these is entitled “Urania reist nach Ägypten:
Wiener Volksbildung und der Orient um 1900†and presents an Austrian field trip to the Pyramids and Egypt in April, 1912. This was led by the President of the Urania institute, opened by the emperor Franz Joseph I in 1910. About 70 individuals went on the trip. some from the Hapsburg family. The exhibition includes a number of vintage photographs and touristic items like postcards and souvenirs, as well as the type of clothing the Viennese would have worn while touring Egypt.
Karim Ben Khelifa: “The World is Changing, Change With It”
Karim Ben Khelifa
Photojournalist Karim Ben Khelifa is interviewed about his work in war zones with a collage of his photographs on Vimeo. This is a short video; check it out for an excellent insight into the art of photojournalism in the Arab Spring and other conflict contexts. For his website of older galleries, click here. For his Twitter account, click here. Karim has also found a new online photojournalism site called Emphasis.is.
Karim’s work in Le Monde
Continue reading Karim Ben Khelifa: “The World is Changing, Change With It”
Baking Bread in Lebanon
Remembering Arab Spring Photographer Rémi Ochlik
Photographer Rémi Ochlik who was killed last year in Syria at the age of 28 (Photo: Corentin Fohlen)
By Adeline Sire, PRI’s The World, February 1, 2013
Many journalists have died covering the Arab uprisings.
Last year, 17 were killed in Syria.
One of them was award-winning French photojournalist Rémi Ochlik.
He was only 28-years-old.
Ochlik documented the revolutions in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya.
Then last year, he headed out to Syria. Continue reading Remembering Arab Spring Photographer Rémi Ochlik