Karimeh Abbud
Encyclopedia
Karimeh Abbud also known as the "Lady Photographer", was a professional photographer and artist
who lived and worked in Lebanon
and Palestine
in the first half of the twentieth century.
in Shefa-'Amr
. Shortly thereafter, he joined the Lutheran church, and the family moved with him as he took up a new post as a pastor in Beit Jala
(1899-1905) and then Bethlehem
, where he was later appointed the parish
priest
. Karimeh grew up spending time in all of these towns, while also attending the Schmidt Girls School in Jerusalem.
It was in Bethlehem in 1913 that she first began to take an interest in photography, after receiving a camera
from her father as a gift for her 17th birthday. Her first photos are of family, friends and the landscape in Bethlehem and her first signed picture is dated October 1919.
Karimeh studied Arabic literature
at the American University of Beirut
in Lebanon
. During this time, she took a trip to Baalbek
to photograph archaeological sites there. She set up a home studio, earning money by taking photos of women and children, weddings and other ceremonies. She also took numerous photos of public spaces in Haifa
, Nazareth, Bethlehem and Tiberias.
By the 1930s she was a professional photographer, rising to prominence in Nazareth, where the Abbud family was well known as her grandfather had served as the senior pharmacist at the Nazareth English Hospital and her father had also served as a pastor there. When local Nazareth photographer Fadil Saba moved to Haifa, Karimeh's studio work was in high demand for weddings and portraits in particular. The work she produced in this period was stamped in Arabic and English with the words: "Karimeh Abbud - Lady Photographer - كريمة عبود: مصورة شمس". In the mid-1930s, she began offering hand-painted copies of studio photographs.
Karimeh's mother died in 1940 prompting her to leave Nazareth, first for Jerusalem and then Bethlehem. In a 1941 letter to her cousins, she expresses her desire to prepare a publicly printed album for her photographic work and to move back to Nazareth. In the events leading up to and after the 1948 Arab-Israeli war
little is known of where she lived or what she experienced. It is known that her father died in June 1949 in his father's hometown of Khiam
in southern Lebanon. It is also known that Karimeh ultimately returned to Nazareth, where she died in 1955 and where copies of her work were first collected.
collector
, discovered over 400 original prints of Abbud's in a home in the Qatamon quarter of Jerusalem that had been abandoned by its owners fleeing the Israeli occupation in 1948. Mrowat has expanded his collection by purchasing the photos from Boazz, many of which are signed by the artist.
Palestinian art
Palestinian art is a term used to refer to paintings, posters, installation art and other visual media produced by Palestinian artists.While the term has also been used to refer to ancient art produced in the geographical region of Palestine, in its modern usage it generally refers to work of...
who lived and worked in Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
and Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
in the first half of the twentieth century.
Early life
In 1896, the year she was born, her father As'ad Abbud, was serving as a lay pastorPastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
in Shefa-'Amr
Shefa-'Amr
Shefa-'Amr, also Shfar'am is a predominantly Arab city in the North District of Israel. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , at the end of 2009 the city had a population of 35,300.-Etymology:...
. Shortly thereafter, he joined the Lutheran church, and the family moved with him as he took up a new post as a pastor in Beit Jala
Beit Jala
Beit Jala is an Arab Christian town in the Bethlehem Governorate of the West Bank. Beit Jala is located 10 km south of Jerusalem, on the western side of the Hebron road, opposite Bethlehem, at altitude...
(1899-1905) and then Bethlehem
Bethlehem
Bethlehem is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank of the Jordan River, near Israel and approximately south of Jerusalem, with a population of about 30,000 people. It is the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate of the Palestinian National Authority and a hub of Palestinian culture and tourism...
, where he was later appointed the parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
. Karimeh grew up spending time in all of these towns, while also attending the Schmidt Girls School in Jerusalem.
Beginnings in photography
Camera
A camera is a device that records and stores images. These images may be still photographs or moving images such as videos or movies. The term camera comes from the camera obscura , an early mechanism for projecting images...
from her father as a gift for her 17th birthday. Her first photos are of family, friends and the landscape in Bethlehem and her first signed picture is dated October 1919.
Karimeh studied Arabic literature
Arabic literature
Arabic literature is the writing produced, both prose and poetry, by writers in the Arabic language. The Arabic word used for literature is adab which is derived from a meaning of etiquette, and implies politeness, culture and enrichment....
at the American University of Beirut
American University of Beirut
The American University of Beirut is a private, independent university in Beirut, Lebanon. It was founded as the Syrian Protestant College by American missionaries in 1866...
in Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
. During this time, she took a trip to Baalbek
Baalbek
Baalbek is a town in the Beqaa Valley of Lebanon, altitude , situated east of the Litani River. It is famous for its exquisitely detailed yet monumentally scaled temple ruins of the Roman period, when Baalbek, then known as Heliopolis, was one of the largest sanctuaries in the Empire...
to photograph archaeological sites there. She set up a home studio, earning money by taking photos of women and children, weddings and other ceremonies. She also took numerous photos of public spaces in Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
, Nazareth, Bethlehem and Tiberias.
Professional studio work
Upheavals
1948 Arab-Israeli War
The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known to Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation The war commenced after the termination of the British Mandate for Palestine and the creation of an independent Israel at midnight on 14 May 1948 when, following a period of civil war, Arab armies invaded...
little is known of where she lived or what she experienced. It is known that her father died in June 1949 in his father's hometown of Khiam
Khiam
'Khiam' is a town located in South Lebanon Governorate, near the city of Nabatieh. It is located in Southern Lebanon, 750 meters above sea level, 120 km away from Beirut and roughly four kilometers from the Israeli border.The town was the scene of a major confrontation between the Israeli...
in southern Lebanon. It is also known that Karimeh ultimately returned to Nazareth, where she died in 1955 and where copies of her work were first collected.
Collection
Original copies of her extensive portfolio have been collected together by Ahmed Mrowat, Director of the Nazareth Archives Project. In 2006, Boki Boazz, an Israeli antiquitiesAntiquities
Antiquities, nearly always used in the plural in this sense, is a term for objects from Antiquity, especially the civilizations of the Mediterranean: the Classical antiquity of Greece and Rome, Ancient Egypt and the other Ancient Near Eastern cultures...
collector
Collecting
The hobby of collecting includes seeking, locating, acquiring, organizing, cataloging, displaying, storing, and maintaining whatever items are of interest to the individual collector. Some collectors are generalists, accumulating merchandise, or stamps from all countries of the world...
, discovered over 400 original prints of Abbud's in a home in the Qatamon quarter of Jerusalem that had been abandoned by its owners fleeing the Israeli occupation in 1948. Mrowat has expanded his collection by purchasing the photos from Boazz, many of which are signed by the artist.