The Middle East Photograph Preservation Initiative held its third course in photograph preservation gathering 17 participants, which began in January 2014 with an 8-day workshop hosted by Darat Al Funun in Amman.

MEPPI courses are designed to provide basic theoretical and practical training in the care of a broad range of photographic materials found in the collections of museums, libraries, archives and other repositories.

MEPPI Amman 2014 course structure:

– An eight-day workshop in Amman that included lectures, demonstrations, hands-on projects, collection visits, and case studies.

– An appproximately eight-month distance-mentoring period of assigned work that participants carry out in their own institutions while remaining in contact with an instructor. These assignments allow participants to apply the concepts and information presented during the workshop to their own collections. Instructors mentor participants by providing advice, guidance and additional information to assist them in their work with their collections. Participants can expect to spend from five to ten hours each month on practical work and distance mentoring with an instructor.

– A follow-up meeting in Beirut which allows instructors and participants to review progress made since the workshop and consider the potential next steps in advancing the preservation of their collections.

Workshop date: 20–28 January 2014

Workshop venue: Darat al Funun in Amman, Jordan

Distance mentoring: February 2014–September 2014

Follow-up meeting: American University of Beirut (AUB) in Lebanon, on 26–30 January 2015

The following course material are available for download:

• Schedule for Workshop in Amman (2014), available in English and Arabic
• Bibliography for Workshop in Amman (2014)
• Schedule for Follow-up Meeting in Beirut (2015), available in English and Arabic
• Session Outline for “Photograph Identification Review” by Nora Kennedy, available in English and Arabic
• Session Outline for “Simple Tests for Housing Material” by Bertrand Lavédrine, available in English and Arabic
• Session Outline for “Practical Housing and Storage Solutions” by Tram Vo, available in English and Arabic

Photo taken by participant Abdulrahman Al-Ghaberi