Maymanah Farhat will present “From the Ashes of Lebanon: Cultural Destruction and Resistance,” a lecture-slide show, 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, October 4, in the Handwerker Gallery at Ithaca College. Ms. Farhat’s talk includes works by Lebanese artists that were made before, during, and after Israel’s recent invasion of Lebanon. This event is free and open to the public.
As an editor of ArteEast, Ms. Farhat publishes articles about Modern Arab art, including the works of Lebanese artists. Her work as an editor, writer and curator of Modern Arab art provides an important lens for understanding the complexity of contemporary Arab societies.
Ms Farhat is also personally familiar with the impact of the war on Lebanese civil society and culture, as she spent much of her childhood in occupied Southern Lebanon and still has family living in this region. She has spent several months in Beirut and Southern Lebanon for the past twelve years.
When Ms. Farhat was in Lebanon during the Fall of 2005, she met with several of the artists that she will be discussing in her presentation. Ms. Farhat explains, “I have been in contact with these artists via email during and after the invasion. I spent time in the home and studio of Youssef Ghazawi in October of 2005, which housed his entire life's work and was destroyed during the invasion in July 2006.”
During the recent invasion, Ms. Farhat’s grandmother, aunts and cousins became refugees. “Their homes are in Southern Lebanon and Dahyeh (the southern neighborhood of Beirut that experienced the most shelling, also where Youssef's home is located),” reports Ms. Farhat. “Their villages and neighborhoods have experienced extensive destruction and are plagued by cluster bombs and the pollution that's resulted from the heavy weaponry used by the Israeli Defense Forces.”
Asma Barlas, director of the CSCRE, welcomes Ms. Farhat’s presentation which, she hopes, will add a cultural dimension to its current series, “Global Fury/Global Fear: Engaging Muslims.”
“From the Ashes of Lebanon” is co-sponsored by the Center for the Study of Culture, Race and Ethnicity, the Politics Department and the Handwerker Gallery at Ithaca College. The event is free and open to the public.
Information: Beth Harris, bharris@ithaca.edu, 274-3517
