Erotic Art In Beirut

UPDATE: Check out the new blog covering the Mid East: Outsider On The Inside

A new exhibition in Beirut featuring paintings with an erotic theme has opened to mixed reactions, in a society where sex is still very much taboo:

Two women painters in Lebanon are pushing the boundaries with a new exhibition called "Erotika," in which their depictions of female sexuality have sparked mixed reactions.

Using vivid colors, the pair are showing images of fetishism, homosexuality and even masturbation in a Beirut art show they hope will help to break taboos in the usually conservative Arab world. Artists Nayla Karam and Maria Sarkis are displaying their Warhol-like pop art in a joint exhibition at a Beirut gallery.

The end of the article offers reactions from people who visited the exhibit, which are interesting to read. This would never have taken place in another Arab country without starting a much bigger controversy:

The exhibition has triggered conflicting reactions among visitors.

Dana Dennawi, a 22-year-old student at the Arab University in Beirut, called the paintings "beautiful, without even a hint of vulgarity."

"There is no harm in representing the different forms of sexual expression," she said.

Leon Khanamirian, a 25-year-old banker, said that "in the Middle East, men are allowed to express their sexual fantasies in a vulgar manner, but when (women) artists paint sexuality, it suddenly becomes a scandal."

Hassan Mekdad, 52, called the paintings shocking, however.

"The artists would have been killed if they lived in an Islamic neighborhood," he said.

Abdallah Dadur, owner of the "Surface" gallery that is staging the exhibition, said he was "proud of these young people who are expressing themselves without any complexes.

"Once more, the Lebanese are at the forefront of moral freedoms in the Arab world."(AFP)

Former Female Militant Fights For Peace

UPDATE: Check out the new blog covering the Mid East: Outsider On The Inside

Came across this article today, about a former female militant who fought for a Christian militia in Lebanon's civil war of the late 70's and 80's. She's all for peace now, but the article provides an interesting look into what armed conflict has meant to some in the region, and leaves hope for some sense of maturity and realization of the cost of war on society.

Jocelyne Khoweiry was 20 years old when she first carried arms during the 1975-90 civil war. Now 51, she is working forcefully for peace.

"In 1975 I was ready to die for my country. Today I want to live for its sake," Khoweiry said on the 32nd anniversary of the outbreak of the 15-year civil war that killed more than 150,000 people.

Khoweiry, in a rare interview, said that she wanted to "relay a message of peace" at a time when many people fear that deeply divided Lebanon may plunge back into the devastating violence and chaos of civil war.

"I tell the young Lebanese of today war is not a game," said Khoweiry, founder and director of the Pope John Paul II Center which provides social, psychological, and medical assistance for those in need. "When violence breaks out it becomes deaf. Nothing stops it."

...

"After carrying arms, I thought repeatedly about becoming a nun. When you see so much violence and drama, you start asking questions about men, death, and God."

In 2000 she founded the Pope John Paul II Center in Ghadir, a mountainous village in the Christian heartland northeast of Beirut, with the help of other "sisters in arms" who discarded their guns to become "messengers of hope and peace."

The former militant insists that her military and spiritual endeavors have much in common.

"Military combat is also an ascetic, mystical experience: one sacrifices oneself in wars - just like in religion," she said.

Pedalling For Peace

UPDATE: Check out the new blog covering the Mid East: Outsider On The Inside

A few hundred women from around the world gathered today to cycle across Lebanon in the name of regional peace:

BEIRUT: Hundreds of women from around the world took to their bicycles in Lebanon on Tuesday to pedal for regional peace. The third annual "Follow the Women - Women for Peace" bike tour completed its first leg around Lebanon with nearly 250 women riding from Sidon to Beirut - a journey of 50 kilometers that took them about six hours to complete.

The female participants, who come from about 30 different countries, found more than just their bicycles waiting for them in Sidon - many of the coastal city's residents flocked to the streets to witness the event.

Small children, their faces painted with Lebanese flags, danced through the crowds, asking to have a turn on a bike. A giant poster of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri was unfurled across Sidon's Sea Castle. Even a marching band chimed in for the festivities.

Nasrallah Remains Defiant

UPDATE: Check out the new blog covering the Mid East: Outsider On The Inside

The struggle for power in Lebanon continues, with Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah giving a defiant speech yesterday, declaring his group will be around for "50 years more" in spite of increasing parliamentary opposition.

In his televised speech to 1700 Hezbollah students who graduated from a Hezbollah run university , Nasrallah also attacked the international tribunal saying it is designed to announce the verdicts that have already been made against certain suspects in the 2005 murder of former PM Rafik Hariri and related crimes.

Check out this post on Beirut Beltway for a good analysis of what Nasrallah's speech means for Lebanon.