The Arab Image Foundation: Collecting, Studying and Preserving Photographs from the Middle East and North Africa.

Abstract

The Arab Image Foundation (AIF) has been collecting, studying and preserving photographs from the Middle East and North Africa since 1997. It runs curatorial and research projects, and activities related to photograph preservation. Fifteen years after its creation, the AIF's archive holds over 600,000 images, including complete collections entrusted by photographers such as Hashem el Madani (Lebanon) or Kamil and Rifaat Chadirji (Iraq). Such collections require sustained efforts in terms of archiving, documenting and digitizing. In addition to the care of its own collection, the AIF's current preservation programs include the Middle East Photograph Preservation Initiative (MEPPI), which seeks to identify and offer training to significant photographic collections in a region where expertise in conservation and preservation is all too often absent. The AIF is also a member of the Modern Heritage Observatory, a coalition which campaigns for the preservation of modern cultural heritage through the creation of a regional network of individuals and institutions committed to its cause.