Rene Wanner's Poster Page / Students from Lebanon make posters about Brazil

WEB POSTER EXHIBITION - Students from Lebanon make posters about Brazil

This web exhibition accompanies the current poster exhibition Farofa Libanesa in Beyrut, Lebanon. Text and pictures were kindly provided by Antoine Abi Aad, curator of the exhibition.

Exhibition logo by Antoine Abi Aad

Place: Centro Cultural Brasil-Libano.
Address: Mar Mitr street, Trad building, N. 176, Achrafieh Beirut, Lebanon
Date: March 21 to April 4, 2013 In 2007, the Academie Libanaise des Beaux-Arts, University of Balamand ( hereafter referred to as ALBA UoB) launched a cultural project entitled 日本展 (Nihonten) or Japan as seen by Lebanese. Third and fourth year students majoring in Advertising expressed their vision of Japan through posters. The first 日本展 exhibition was held at the ALBA UoB campus on December 2007. In May 2008, 日本展 was organized at College Freres - Beirut during the Japanese Kermes, and later in October 2009, the exhibition was finally held in Japan, in Nara University of Education.
Following the success of Nihonten, the Italian Embassy requested ALBA to carry out a similar project with Italy. After a three-week workshop in 2010, organized with the support of the Italian Embassy and the assistance of the “Instituto Italiano di Cultura Beirut,” the exposition “23 Ventitre” or Italy as seen by 23 Lebanese students took place in the ALBA campus. In August 2010, a selection of posters from ALBA UoB, including posters from Nihonten and Ventitre, were displayed at the Universidade de Brasilia- Brazil during the event “Conexao Libano-Brasil de Tipografia”.
In 2011, ALBA UoB held an exhibition Chocolat aux cedres, a project where Swiss students from Schule für Gestaltung Basel presented their vision of Lebanon, and Lebanese students from ALBA UoB presented their vision of Switzerland. The posters were displayed in two exhibitions in October 2011; the first from 7 until 21 at Ausstellungsraum der Schule für Gestaltung in Basel, and the second from 21 until 28 at ALBA UoB, Beirut.
The year 2012 is that of Brazil, a country that has more Lebanese descendants than the Lebanese population residing in Lebanon. Farofa Libanesa is a project composed of 55 posters portraying Brazil as seen by 31 students from ALBA UoB. During a two-week workshop, Caetano Veloso, Elis Regina, Clara Nunes, Gilberto Gil, and Cassia among other singers accompanied the students as they created their posters. "You cannot portray Brazil if you do not listen to its music", I told my students. Football, Lebanese descendants, coffee, and Christ the Redeemer were among the cliches that were creatively interpreted in the posters. As a first step, ALBA UoB will hold this exhibition in Lebanon. We hope to put on an exhibition in Brazil in the near future, as a cultural exchange between both countries.

Exhibition poster by Antoine Abi Aad