Jordan pays homage to Palestinian 'Lady Photographer' with exhibit
In a neighborhood in Amman, a photography exhibition honors Karimeh Abbud, also known as the "Lady Photographer," who stood apart from her male contemporaries with her unique access to Palestinian women in their homes.
One legacy of photographer Karimeh Abbud lies in the unique way she captured daily life in the 1920s and 1930s. Known as the “Lady Photographer,” she was the first known Palestinian or Arab women to have set up a photography studio catering to the public. Images depicting the lives and the era she saw through her lens are currently on view at Darat al Funun (House of the Arts) in the Jabal al-Webde neighborhood, in Amman. Self-titled, the show is the first comprehensive exhibition of photographs from the collection of Ahmad Mrowat that only came to light in 2006.
Abbud's photos are testimony to a slice of the 20th century, bearing witness to life in British Mandate Palestine and Lebanon. Unlike her contemporary male photographers, Abbud had access to the private lives of women. With such entree, she photographed Palestinian women from different classes inside their homes, some preferring traditional dress and others sporting more modern styles and occasionally professional attire, like a nurse’s uniform. Along with capturing the character of the women photographed, Abbud's lens also recorded interior lifestyles of the time, secondarily documenting furniture and interior design.
“I was impressed by the details she brings to her pictures and her portrayal of various professions, leisure activities and family unity,” Susan Ibrawesh, a visitor to the exhibition, told Al-Monitor. “We — as Jordanians of Palestinian origin — can imagine our grandparents’ everyday life only through photos,” she added, looking at the young athletes and the families Abbud photographed.
A regional and international center, Darat al Funun presents traveling and permanent exhibitions and organizes lectures and gallery talks, publications, conferences and film screenings. The center has a print and video library and offers fellowships, art residencies and exchanges.
