ART EDUCATION in LEBANON by BUSHRA FAKHOURY
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1 ART EDUCATION IN LEBANON by BUSHRA FAKHOURY Submitted for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Institute of Education University of London 1983 AB ST RACT This study is concerned with the examination and investigation of facts and documents relating to past and present provisions for the teaching of art and design in the Republic of Lebanon. It encompasses nursery, elementary, secondary and higher grades of schooling and includes initial evaluation of the present art syllabus. The study will be accompanied by a survey of the current state of art and design practice in Lebanon, as set against the historical background and cultural heritage of the country. The effect of recent political events on education will be appraised. From the material a number of inferences will be drawn concerning the needs and priorities of art and design education in Lebanon. The study concludes with proposals for reorganising and updating the art syllabus. In the conclusion a number of recommendations will be made to assist with the diffusion and dissemination of art education throughout the country. CONTENTS Page Title Page Table of Contents List of Illustrations viii. List of Appendix A x. List of Appendix B xi. Introduction and Acknowledgment xvi. Chapter I. The Historical Background to Lebanon. 1 Chapter II. The National Setting. 17 Introduction 17 Geography 17 Demographic Details 18 Society and Culture 20 Religious Background 21 Economics and Development 22 Manpower Planning 24 International Relations 25 Chapter III. The Education System. 26 1. Aims, Objectives and Implementation. 26 a. Objectives 26 b. Planning 27 c. Administration 28 d. Finance 29 2. The Structure of the System. 31 Pre-School Education 32 Primary Education 32 Primary Examinations 33 Lower Secondary Education 33 Lower Secondary Examinations 33 Upper Secondary Education 34 Baccalaureat Parts I and II Examinations 34 iv. Page Higher Education 35 a. The Lebanese University 35 b. The Beirut Arab University 36 c. The American University of Beirut 37 d. The University of Saint Joseph 38 e. The University of Saint Esprit (Kaslik) 38 f. The Beirut University College 38 g. Academie Libanaise des Beaux-Arts (ALBA) 41 h. The Armenian Hagazian College 41 i. College des Antonins 41 j. College de la Sagesse 41 k. Soeurs de Nazareth 41 Non-Formal Literacy 42 Vocational Education 44 The Evaluation of the Existing Provisions 45 The Internal Efficiency of the System 49 a. Distribution of Facilities and Availability of Amenities 49 b. Increase in Demand 49 c. Financial Resources 50 d. High Drop-Out Rates 50 e. Shortage of Teachers 50 f. Examinations 50 g. Other Problems 50 External Relevance 51 Trends and Possibilities 53 Educational Strategies at the Planning Level 54 3. Teacher Training Colleges. 55 a. Government Colleges 55 Present Art Syllabus 1977-1978 58 Fine Art Programrhe 58 Course Description: Art Education 59 Course Description: Music Education 62 Page b. National and Private Universities 68 1. The American University of Beirut 68 2. The Faculty of Education, Lebanese University 77 3. The Beirut University College 78 4. The University of Saint Joseph 85 5. The University of Saint Esprit (Kaslik) 86 6. Soeurs de Nazareth 86 4, Curriculum Development. 87 1. The First Period: 1924-1946 89 The Art Syllabus in Primary Schools (1925) 91 a. City Schools 91 b. District Schools 94 2. The Second Period: 1946-1968 95 The Art Syllabus: 1946 98 Elementary Level 98 Higher Elementary and Secondary Level 102 3. The Third Period: 1968-1971 108 General Objectives of the Present Curriculum 109 Objectives of the Art Syllabus: 1971 110 The Art Syllabus 111 Chapter IV, Art in Lebanon. 120 1. Historical Background. 120 2. Contemporary Art. 124 Daoud Corm 125 Habib Serour 125 Khalil Sal leeby 128 Khalil Gibran 128 Youssef Hoyeck 128 Cesar Gemayel 133 Omar Onsi 133 Moustafa Farroukh 133 Mouzzaz Rawdah 137 Halim el-Hage 139 vi. Page Saloua Rouda Choucair 139 Rachid Wehbi 142 Mounir Eido 142 Michel Basbous 142 Jean Khal ife 146 Helen Khal 146 Farid Awad 149 Alfred Basbous 149 Chafic Abboud 152 Paul Guiragossian 152 Said Ak I 155 Hal im Jurdak 155 Aref Rayess 158 Yvette Achkar 160 Joseph Basbous 160 Wahib Btedini 160 Adel Saghir 164 Nazem Irani 164 Amin Sfeir 167 Wajih Nahle 167 Amine Elbacha 170 Rafic Charaf 170 Mounir Najem 173 Juliana Seraphim 173 Nadia Saikali 173 Moussa Tiba 177 Ibrahim Marzouk 179 Hussein Madi 179 °dile Mazloum 182 3. Current Issues. 185 a. Ammendment of Art Programmes 185 b. The Use of the Media for Educational Purposes 191 c. Museums 193 d. Art Festivals 193 e. Publication of Art and Art Education Magazines 194 vii. Page 4. Universities/Academies of Fine Art. 196 1. Beirut University College 197 2. The Lebanese University Institute of Fine Art 216 3. Academie Li banaise des Beaux-Arts (ALBA) 252 4, University Saint-Esprit (Kaslik) 263 5. Universite Saint-Joseph 269 5. Vocational and Technical Art Schools. 271 6. Private Art Facilities. 280 Chapter V. Survey of Recent and Current Literature. 285 1. Objectives of Art and Design Education 287 2. Art in the Curriculum 289 3. The Art Syllabus 293 a. Primary Education 294 b. Secondary Education 295 c. Examinations 303 4. The Training of Artists and Designers 305 5. The Training of Teachers 306 6. The Methodology of Teaching Art and Design 308 Chapter VI. Constructive Proposals for the Reorganisation and Improvement of Art Education in Lebanon. 312 Chapter VII, Conclusion. 320 Appendix A 326 Appendix B 341 References 402 Bibliography 410 CHAPTER I. THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND TO LEBANON. Lebanon was first inhabited about 3,000 B.C. Semitic tribes settled in villages along the Mediterranean coast; the same race of people occupied the rest of the Levantine strip in Western Asia, the wide space between the two old civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt. The tribes in Palestine were called the Canaanites and the tribes to the north were called, by the Greeks, Phoenicians, after their purple- dyed textiles. The Phoenicians named their town Beirut, which is probably derived from their word for wells, and later the Romans 1 called it Berytus.— The Phoenicians gave the western world the 2 first phonetic alphabet.— Ruins found in Jubail or 'Byblos' as the Greeks called it, situated to the north of Beirut, proved that schools have existed since the 23rd century B.C. The archeological dis- coveries in Byblos were excavated by Maurice Dunand, and he later 3 gave full details of the excavations in his written works.- This area was easily captured by a long series of invaders: Egyptians, Babylonians, Assyrians, Persians, Greeks, Byzantines and Romans. Although the Phoenicians were obliged to pay tribute to these conquerors, they became prosperous because of their trade 4 in cedar wood, dyed cloth, metal work, fruits and wines.- They were also known for their navigation, having sailed to the Baltic and to England in search of tin and amber. They also founded many colonies around the Mediterranean. Of all their colonies, however, the one that made its mark in history was Carthage, in what is today Tunisia. It developed into an empire that embraced North Africa and Southern Spain. The culture of the Phoenicians was passed to the West in the second and first millenniums B.C. , largely through travel and trading with the Greek and Italian shores, as well as through colonies on the Southern European shores, in Spain and in North Africa. In 333-326 B.C. , Western Asia, along with Egypt, Persia and Mesopotamia were invaded by the Macedonian conqueror Alexander the Great. Lebanon was included under the new rule. The fusion 2. of the Greek legacy with the ancient civilization produced the 5 Hellenistic culture.- The next conquerors were the Romans, their culture in turn being assimilated. Between the years 64 and 54 B.C. at the time of the Emperor Nero, the Romans started building the great temple of Baalbek on the site of an ancient shrine. Another temple was built in Byblos for the great cult of Venus and Adonis, which was one of the most important fertility religions of the Mediterranian world. Lebanon cities like Antioch, Tyre, Byblos and Baalbek bear to this 6 day the mark of Roman heritage,- Tyre was the first site of a Christian community and towards the close of the second century seat of a Christian Bishop. By the early fourth Christian century Sidon had already become an episcopal seat. The Christianising 7 process continued its northward march to Beirut. — During the Roman rule Beirut became famous for its school of law and its distinguished jurists. Ulpian and Papinian taught there during the third century A.D. Three centuries later Dorotheus and Anatolius 8 of Beirut helped Justinian to compile his great code of law.- Due to the security of Roman rule, Beirut or Berytus, grew in importance and students came from all over the Empire to study. But in 555 A.D. this prosperous city was destoyed by earth- quakes, and thirty thousand Berytians were reported to have died. The restoration was progressing slowly when fire broke out in 560 A.D. and played havoc with most buildings. A contemporary Greek lawyer and historian of Asia Minor mourned the loss: "A Berytus most beautiful, hitherto the ornament of Phoenicia, was then deprived of its splendour. Its most famous masterpieces of architecture were thrown down, almost none were left standing. Only the foundations 9 were spared. 11— The earth-shaking event of 555 A. D. on the Lebanese coast was shortly followed by world-shaking happenings in the Arabian peninsula. The start may be traced back to the prophet Mohammed, born at Mecca in 570 A.