Remembering Bibi Zogbe: ‘La Pintora de las Flores’, who holds pride of place in the canon of Modern Lebanese art | The National

'Untitled' (1941) by Bibi Zogbe. Saleh Barakat Gallery, Beirut. By thenationalnews.com
'Untitled' (1941) by Bibi Zogbe. Saleh Barakat Gallery, Beirut. By thenationalnews.com

In the early 2000s, I discovered that in 1947, the Lebanese government funded publications on three artists: Omar Onsi, Saliba Douaihy and Bibi, at the height of independence. In the same year, Bibi participated in a group exhibition at the National Museum of Beirut, and was awarded the Lebanese Cedar Medallion of Excellence. Lebanese author Rushdy Maalouf wrote about the show – a feat for Bibi to be lauded by a well-regarded essayist. Though she had emigrated to Argentina in 1907 at the age of 16, she frequented Lebanon enough to be recognized by the country’s cultural elite.

Remembering Bibi Zogbe: ‘La Pintora de las Flores’, who holds pride of place in the canon of Modern Lebanese art | The National