Arab Image Foundation
The Arab Image Foundation (; / ALA-LC: "al-Muʾassasah al-ʿArabiyyah lil-Ṣūrah") is a non-profit organization established in Beirut in 1997. It aims to track down, collect, preserve and study photographs from the Middle East, North Africa and the Arab diaspora. Its expanding collection includes more than 600,000 photographic objects from Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Iraq, Iran, Mexico, Argentina, and Senegal. History. Arab Image Foundation was created in 1997 by photographers Fouad Elkoury and Samer Mohdad, and artist Akram Zaatari as a reaction to the lack of photographic archives in the region and the rapid  disappearance of the few that remained. Lucien Samaha was one of the original members of the Arab Image Foundation. The collections reveal a large aspect of the social history of the Arab World, including the picture that Arabs have constructed of themselves since the creation of photography. The Foundation has become internationally and regionally recognized as the leading photographic institution in the Middle East. In addition to housing and conserving hundreds of thousands of photographs, the Foundation has spearheaded conservations and preservation projects in the Middle East, co-sponsoring workshops to disseminate the knowledge and skills needed to identify, restore , and conserve the Arab world's large photographic archive. In addition to on site facilities including a public space, a library, a research center and a laboratory, the AIF has organized multiple gallery and museum exhibits, and produced book publications, monographs, films, and collectible merchandise, such as postcards and posterbook publications and films. The foundation also runs a prestigious residency program for artists and scholars. Governance. The Foundation is governed by a Board of Directors and a General Assembly. The current Board of Directors (2021–2024) is composed of Vartan Avakian, Donald Choubassi, Yasmine Eid-Sabbagh, Fabiola Hanna, Kristine Khouri, and  Hrair Sarkissian. The General Assembly includes Zeina Arida, Vartan Avakian, Negar Azimi, Lara Baladi, Karl Bassil, Donald Choubassi, Yasmine Eid-Sabbagh, Fabiola Hanna, Kristine Khouri, Khaled Malas, Sarah Morris, Issam Nassar, Hrair Sarkissian, and Tamara Sawaya.