Lina Ghaibeh
Distinguished Artist, Educator, and Activist
Lina Ghaibeh Speaking at "In Transit" Exhibition
(Source: "War, Romance, and Everyday life in Beirut's Emerging Alt-Comix Scene" by Jonathon Guyer)
Lina Ghaibeh and Mariette Awad. Illustration by Lina Ghaibeh (Source: "Using Artificial Intelligence to Read Arabic Comics" by Edward Fox)
Lina Ghaibeh was born in Damascus, Syria where she spent a portion of her childhood and today lives a very busy life in Beirut, Lebanon (Lina). She is a leading figure in the development and advancement of Arab comic art, both in terms of its accessibility within and beyond the Arab speaking world, as well as in its use as an effective tool for activism. Her own creative work includes graphic narratives and novels, illustration, photography and personal animation shorts varying from clay to cartoon animation (Faculty). In addition, she teaches animation as well as interactive media design and comics at the American University of Beirut acting as a mentor for developing students within the field (Faculty). Her own educational background is extensive first earning a bachelor's degree in art from Beirut University College, and then moving on to complete a master's degree in design as well as a minor in photography at Texas Women's University (Lina) She carries out a great deal of outreach work through her position as director of the American University of Beirut's Mutaz and Rada Sawwaf Arabic Comics Initiative, an organization whose goal is to promote all things Arab comics (Guyer, "From Beirut"). Consequently, she is credited in large part for the rise in interest of graphic narratives in particular as an object of study (Guyer, "War"). The organization also certainly aims to recognize artists in the field as they regularly hold contests in which comic strips and graphic narratives among other categories can be entered for prizes from five to ten thousand dollars (Guyer, "From Beirut"). Notably, Ghaibeh is a dedicated archivist, as she both founded and maintains her University's archive of Arabic comics, which features early work out of the Arab world and offers a means through which the development of comic art can be traced from as far back as the 19th century (Guyer, "War"). Thanks to her, precious and irreplaceable comics from the earliest known children's periodicals to works left behind by assassinated political cartoonists are kept safe and accessible (Guyer, "War"). Ghaibeh herself has a particular interest in studying the language and the form of children's comics that were product of the more distant past (Guyer, "War"). Within the debate of what the identifying features of the Arab alt-comic genre are, Ghaibeh points out the rich variation in their language, as to stress that there is not a singular style (Guyer, "War"). With that said, Ghaibeh seeks out contemporary works to add to the collection in her travels to Algeria and Morocco among other countries where she attends comic festivals (Guyer, "War"). Preserving such cultural relics ensures that they will be available for future pioneering research and projects as well. For instance, in a recent endeavor, Mariette Awad of the American University of Beirut's department of electrical and computer engineering collaborated with Ghaibeh in a project that aimed to unveil any elusive meaning within the language of a given Arabic comic via artificial intelligence (Fox). Awad explained that Arabic comics are as revealing of the sentiments of the people within a culture the same as any other form of literature, and that each comic author makes unique linguistic choices that embody valuable meaning not immediately apparent (Fox). She goes on to explain that the Arabic language is uniquely rich in words that encompass multiple yet subtle layers of meaning. Part of her research effort involved gathering Arabic comics which in part came from Ghaibeh's archived collection. Perhaps another payoff of such research is that it will help advance the positive reputation of Arabic comics within the academic field as literature not to be overlooked.
George Khoury JAD displaying his portfolio (Source: Oum Cartoon)
A Power Couple
Lina Ghaibeh is married to George Khoury JAD, a comix artist equally passionate about the use of his work as well as that of others as tools for activism. He might be best-known for having founded the JAD Workshop in 1984 (Guyer, "War"). To this day, Ghaibeh often works side by side with her husband furthering the advancement of Arab comix, so it seems fitting that they met when she signed up for one of his intensive workshops in the earliest days of JAD workshop (Guyer, "From Beirut"). The focus was to be on how to most effectively mold comics that were traditionally geared towards children into something that would speak to adult audiences (Guyer, "From Beirut"). Or in other words, the goal was to go from children's comics to adult comix (Guyer, "From Beirut"). Khoury is also famous for having been a first in the movement, as he published Lebanon's first graphic novels for adults through the JAD workshop (Guyer, "War"). One can sense the passion that he holds for his work in observing his strongly opinionated and outspoken nature. Such passion must stem at least in part from the very serious and high stakes historical moment of the Lebanese civil war that triggered the development of Arab comix (Guyer, "From Beirut"). During the chaos and violence, Khoury is quoted as saying "Why should I draw comics for kids?" (Guyer, "From Beirut"). He is further quoted as saying "The war is the major if not decisive factor is shaping my artistic choices, and making this comic path, and helped comics as a genre of art to flourish" (Guyer "From Beirut"). He is most defiantly a firm believer in the power of the image. During one symposium at Lebanese American University he made a potentially controversial statement saying "...narration should be mainly visual, and if there is no narrative text, who cares? We are visual artists, not novelists" (Department). One can imagine that during a time of war images of violence, devastation and destruction would indeed have a striking impact on audiences. So, his position is compelling. In 1989 for instance, the comic entitled From Beirut made its way into the public arena thanks to JAD workshop (Guyer, "From Beirut"). The work juxtaposes those aspects of delightful quotidian life such as romance with images of violence and destruction brought on by war, as to speak to the will of the people immersed in such grim circumstances to go on living (Guyer, "From Beirut").
From "An Education in Fear" by Lina Ghaibeh (Source: The Nib)
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From "An Education in Fear" by Lina Ghaibeh (Source: The Nib)
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Lina Ghaibeh's An Education in Fear
War is a theme which gave rise to Lina Ghaibeh's work An Education in Fear, which narrates her childhood in Syria under the regime of Hafez al-Assad and the Ba'ath Party during the time of the civil war. Notably, the work is published in English broadening the scope of potential audiences, and effectively offering those in the western world insight into the government's exploitation of the education system in order to use children as tools of propaganda. Audiences are taken back to 1978 when she moved back to Damascus, Syria with her family as a young girl. The work focuses on her and her twin sister May's experiences throughout school, juxtaposing the abuse that they endured and the chaos in the country with the innocence of a child's perspective. Ghaibeh details military education classes, physical and emotional punishment for not being in proper uniform, training to handle guns, learning chants in support of Assad, and being pulled out of class to attend rallies that aired on television. She and her sister along with the rest of their classmates were essentially tricked into demonstrating to the world their boundless support for the Ba'ath Party. Like many school children, they did what they were told in classes wanting to perform well. She relates how her and her sister advanced rapidly in the skill of shooting. Consequently, their impressed teachers wanted to recruit them for the Ba'ath Youth Party. Ghaibeh reveals that the experiences that she shares in this work are tied up in her identity as a Syrian, and that she is not alone. So, in An Education in Fear, she brings to light the shared reality of such Syrian school children, former and perhaps current. Ultimately, she offers a perspective that the television news generally lacks.
From "An Education in Fear" by Lina Ghaibeh (Source: The Nib)
Lina Ghaibeh speaking out for children in the Arab World
Still Shot from Lina Ghaibeh's Animated Short "School" (Source: Vimeo blog)
Lina Ghaibeh's childhood seems to have had a lasting impact on her as the education system, whether it be information passed on through school or the media, is a recurring theme throughout much of her professional work. For a long time Arab children's comics were recognized to be effective and common avenues though which children were reached and their minds molded by various religious or political groups (Guyer, "Nationalism" ). Thanks to Ghaibeh's archival work, the study of such phenomena past and potentially present may be undertaken, and the reality of it publicly acknowledged and articulated (Guyer, "Nationalism"). For instance, she has collected comics that serve to promote various leaders such as those from the series entitled Saddam, and notes that the comics were the product of the particular leaders own undertaking making the intentions behind it all too obvious (Guyer, "Nationalism"). She has also exposed comics that glorify terrorist acts such as suicide bombings (Qualey). Ghaibeh does regularly note however, that such children's magazines fabricated by the state are less common while a diversity of non-state run magazines are gaining traction (Qualey).
Ghaibeh regularly lectures on the subject of propaganda in children's comics from the Arab world. One such lecture occurred in 2014 at The Media Digital Literacy Academy of Beirut where she presented comics from Syria, Iraq and Egypt among other countries. In it, nationalist sentiment is among the themes that she focuses on. For instance, she shows one Syrian comic from the series entitled Osama with a glorified soldier on the cover, and she is sure to point out the rockets that one can see flying behind him (00:02:05-00:03:30). She also discuss magazines in Iraq, which like those in Syria, promoted the Ba'ath Party and their accompanying values such as militarism (00:02:05-00:03:30). Here, one can certainly note rhymes from her childhood within the content of the work that she focuses on. The audience is also shown a magazine cover that has drawings of children admiringly crowding around a leader who rises above them (00:03:35-00:04:00). Her lecture is in English and certainly worth listening to in order to get an idea of the history of comics in the Arab world as they pertain to children. Further, one might gain a greater appreciation for the value of the image and consequently the potential impact of graphic narratives as they continue to develop in response to societal goals. Ghaibeh then, along with graphic artists who do similar work, becomes a figure who represents hope, for she uses the genre to advance honorable goals that will improve society.
Ghaibeh's series of personal animation shorts grapple with various themes. One entitled School features a young child who is blocked from going to school and instead forced to work shining shoes on the street. This piece was produced by Future TV in Beirut, Lebanon and was in fact recognized by UNICEF as a work that speaks to children's rights (Ghaibeh, "School"). There is no spoken dialogue, only the sound of incoherent chatter among the excited students while one child who does not get to go to school is left out. Instead, sorrowful music is played to accompany him as he works or is prevented from entering the school building. The piece is just a few minutes long, but even with no dialogue, delivers a powerful portrait of the implications of the past and current crisis of a world where children are denied an education. So, it is a simple cartoon that is a very serious call to action.
Ghaibeh regularly lectures on the subject of propaganda in children's comics from the Arab world. One such lecture occurred in 2014 at The Media Digital Literacy Academy of Beirut where she presented comics from Syria, Iraq and Egypt among other countries. In it, nationalist sentiment is among the themes that she focuses on. For instance, she shows one Syrian comic from the series entitled Osama with a glorified soldier on the cover, and she is sure to point out the rockets that one can see flying behind him (00:02:05-00:03:30). She also discuss magazines in Iraq, which like those in Syria, promoted the Ba'ath Party and their accompanying values such as militarism (00:02:05-00:03:30). Here, one can certainly note rhymes from her childhood within the content of the work that she focuses on. The audience is also shown a magazine cover that has drawings of children admiringly crowding around a leader who rises above them (00:03:35-00:04:00). Her lecture is in English and certainly worth listening to in order to get an idea of the history of comics in the Arab world as they pertain to children. Further, one might gain a greater appreciation for the value of the image and consequently the potential impact of graphic narratives as they continue to develop in response to societal goals. Ghaibeh then, along with graphic artists who do similar work, becomes a figure who represents hope, for she uses the genre to advance honorable goals that will improve society.
Ghaibeh's series of personal animation shorts grapple with various themes. One entitled School features a young child who is blocked from going to school and instead forced to work shining shoes on the street. This piece was produced by Future TV in Beirut, Lebanon and was in fact recognized by UNICEF as a work that speaks to children's rights (Ghaibeh, "School"). There is no spoken dialogue, only the sound of incoherent chatter among the excited students while one child who does not get to go to school is left out. Instead, sorrowful music is played to accompany him as he works or is prevented from entering the school building. The piece is just a few minutes long, but even with no dialogue, delivers a powerful portrait of the implications of the past and current crisis of a world where children are denied an education. So, it is a simple cartoon that is a very serious call to action.
Source: Media Digital Literacy Academy of Beirut, uploaded by System
Further Formal Recognition of Lina Ghaibeh's Animated Shorts
The Middle East International Film Festival
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The 2008 Middle East International Film Festival aimed to highlight and promote the work of Arab Women who produce films, in part to incorporate a rich diversity of female perspectives (MEIFF). War, particularly concerning the conflict between Israel and Palestine was a dominant theme among the works presented and Ghaibeh's featured piece, My Son fit right in (MEIFF). In it, as is Ghaibeh's style, there is no spoken dialogue, only the dreary noises of the city while one mother is shown to be existing as opposed to living, the circumstance brought about by the loss of her son in the context of the Lebanese civil war. There is almost no color other than greys and browns in the background of the mother as if she is existing submerged in shadows. Towards the end she is shown wailing and not even that can be heard. Perhaps Ghaibeh intended to speak to the loud cries of people everywhere who must suffer in silence in the face of loss during or following war. This work is a reminder that even if war ends and the rest of the world moves on, there are still those who feel the everyday pain of the loss of a loved one.
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Still Shot from Lina Ghaibeh's Animated Short "My Son" (Source: Vimeo blog)
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Animated Short: Burj el Murr: Tower of Bitterness
The history of a place still lives on there, even if it is invisible and forgotten. It is a fact that many of the high towering buildings of Beirut were fought over during Lebanon's civil war between opposing sides, who wanted a place to rise above the city making it all the easier for them to aim and kill (Abi-Habib). Such knowledge perhaps goes unrealized among people who live in parts of the world that allowed them distance from this event. Ironically, Beirut's Holiday Inn hotel was one such building that attracted snipers, which left a building typically used for tourists riddled with bullets (Abi-Habib). Some of these tall buildings remain standing in Beirut, some in precarious condition whose futures in the city are uncertain (Abi-Habib). However, the histories of these buildings are still haunting forces for the people in the city whose lives were touched by the violent war (Abi-Habib). Ghaibeh's animated short Burj el Murr: Tower of Bitterness is her artistic attempt to speak to the history of that tower, and essentially all of the towers and buildings like it that had significant roles in the civil war (Abi-Habib). She explains that we need to keep such memories alive, no matter how unsettling and violent, so that history may not repeat itself (Abi-Habib). The piece then, shows a building that is alive, or at least alive with shadows. At one point images of snipers are presented, who are visible and detailed but their features made of shadow. They seem to exist not on the wall but inside the wall. Perhaps they are what has brought the building itself to life. Towards the end of the film, the tall building is seen walking down the street, top of it bowed the way a head would be as if it is ashamed, having internalized unto itself the burdens of the humans lost within it.
Clay Animation
Student Project for Lina Ghaibeh's class of Motion Graphics and Animation (Source: Vimeo blog)
Lina Ghaibeh and George Khoury JAD have earned notoriety through their work in clay animation, being the first in Lebanon along with the rest of their team of artists to use clay as a mode of expression and as an artistic form of activism ("Lebanese", 00:01:20-00:01:33). In Lebanese Clay Animation, both Ghaibeh and Khoury explain that it is Beirut's people and landscape that have inspired their work in the past and continues to when it comes to clay animation (00:04:40-00:05:24). Audiences are offered insight into the unique and tedious process of clay animation. It is revealed that a clip of just a minute and a half takes over a month of labor (00:03:30-00:03:55). It would appear then that this art form is defiantly not the same as just playing with play dough, but takes serious dedication and skill on the part of the artist.The featured character is a man called Ata, who is meant to be a representation as well as a celebration of the everyday man of Beirut (00:01:35-00:02:05). Such effort audiences learn, is in part to change the narrative of the glorification of men in power (00:02:30-00:02:40). Ghaibeh in fact developed this character (00:01:35-00:02:05). Audiences can watch as she draws Ata on a piece of paper to when he comes to life in the form of clay. Ghaibeh calls Ata "an anti-hero", describing him as someone who certainly has his social faults but is ultimately endearing (00:01:35-00:02:05).
Animated Short: Sad Man
Lina Ghaibeh's animated short Sad Man, in a similar spirit to her clay animated character Ata, is a work that speaks to everyday experiences of Beirut's common man. Unlike Ata, her unnamed character in Sad Man does not feature a happy-go-lucky man but rather as the title suggests, a sad man. Despite his dreary demeanor however, he is still somehow endearing. The work combines elements of magical realism with everyday life in a run-down apartment in Beirut. Further, Ghaibeh demonstrates her own ability an an artist to empathize with people from a variety of walks of life and capture their sentimentality.
Still Shot From Lina Ghaibeh's Animated Short "Sad Man" (Source: Vimeo blog)
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Keeping Hope Alive
Lina Ghaibeh's position as director of the American University of Beirut's Arabic Comics Initiative means that she is a figure that people in the Arab comics scene are going to look to for representation and even guidance. It also means that at times challenging decisions are going to fall onto her shoulders. For instance, when she organized Beirut's first Symposium on Arabic Comics the city was jolted by suicide bombings shortly before the day of the event (Guyer, "Arabs"). In response, Ghaibeh rescheduled the event but it ultimately did go on at her doing (Guyer, "Arabs"). Such a decision is telling of her ability to work through difficult times. At the same time, such a dismal event demonstrated, in a way, what drives many comix artists such as Ghaibeh to carry out the work that they do. The tackling of harrowing and delicate subjects and themes within Arab comix is a recurrent trend, an effort to document, communicate to audiences, and personally navigate the difficult stuff that is dealt out in life. Ghaibeh for instance, is known for her attention to the reality and experience of displacement within her own work, as well as within the work that she promotes (Guyer, "War").
Coverage of "In-Transit" Exhibition (Source: YouTube, uploaded by Al-Monitor)
In-Transit
From "In-Transit" Exhibition (Source: "War, Romance, and Everyday Life in Beirut's Emerging Alt-Comix Scene" by Jonathon Guyer)
Both Lina Ghaibeh and George Khoury JAD have developed sensibilities, perhaps brought on at least in part by the violence that has touched their own lives and the losses that they have been exposed to. Khoury for instance, in his mingling within the comix scene crossed paths with several of the Charlie Hebdo cartoonists who were murdered in the 2015 terrorists attacks in Paris (Guyer, "War"). Ghaibeh, for the Arab Comics Initiative, organized a symposium where Khoury spoke to the audience about the emerging efforts on the parts of graphic journalists to seek out refugee camps in various countries such as Lebanon and Syria (Guyer, "War"). They listen to the people there, who otherwise might not be acknowledged or heard, and record their accounts so that they may be shared with the rest of the world (Guyer, "War"). This same symposium included an exhibit entitled In-Transit, indeed organized by Ghaibeh (Guyer, "War"). The focus was on experiences of violence, displacement and searching for refuge around the globe. Featured in Lebanon's Comics Expo were works that cited the Rwandan genocide as well as those that focused on current crises of the time such as the massive numbers of Syrian refugees in Egypt, Iraq and Lebanon among other countries (00:00:01-00:00:13). In a video interview Ghaibeh discusses her firm stance that comics have the power to deliver stories that work to incite empathy within audiences in ways that the traditional news cannot (00:00:50-00:01:40). So, she goes on to express, that is why she organizes events such as In-Transit (00:00:50-00:01:40). She particularly hopes to reach people outside of the Arab comix scene, and get them interested in this emerging art form, so that the stories offered will be able to circulate more widely and create a greater potential for change (00:00:50-00:01:40).
Still Shot from "The Wind" (Source: Vimeo blog)
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From "An Education in Fear" by Lina Ghaibeh. Depicts Lina and May Ghaibeh as children in Syria standing at their school bus stop (Source: The Nib)
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The Wind
The Wind, directed by Teir el Akhdar collective, is another of Ghaibeh's creative works in which she collaborates with artists Sawsan Nourallah, Ibrahim Ramadan and her sister May Ghaibeh (Zoppo). The piece combines stop motion with actual audio emanated from war and conflict that intends to reveal the reality of life in Syria at the time (Zoppo). Lina and May Ghaibeh worked together on the editing and sound (Zoppo). Serving to make the message all the more compelling, two of its artists are refugees in Lebanon themselves, and another is in the process of seeking asylum (Zoppo). The video features human figures in the midst of chaos and turmoil as they are blown across a map, as to elude to being helplessly pushed out of their country by a force beyond their control.