Adham Center Honors Shems Friedlander

Award-winning graphics designer, painter, poet, photographer, and documentary film-maker, Shems Friedlander is AUC's own Renaissance Man. He is also chairman of the Sony Gallery's International Advisory Board and creative director for the Transnational Broadcasting Studies Journal (www.tbsjournal.com).

All of these reasons prompted AUC Provost Earl (Tim) Sullivan to appoint Design professor Shems Friedlander to the position of Associate of the Adham Center for Television Journalism in a ceremony at the Sony Gallery on March 12, 2003.

In his citation, Provost Sullivan noted Prof. Friedlander's nine years of moral and professional support for the Center, drawing attention to his role as chairman of the international advisory board of the Sony Gallery, a role that has allowed him to encourage professional photographers of merit to exhibit at the Gallery and to forge a relationship with the Aperture Foundation, a leading force in the United States for the appreciation of still photography. Prof. Friedlander, the Provost noted, has also involved himself in the design and production of nearly all of the Sony Gallery's posters, catalogues, and invitations, thus helping to create the positive image that has encouraged local and regional media to provide regular cover of the Gallery's exhibitions. Prof. Friedlander has, in addition, held two shows of his own work at the Gallery.

The Provost also mentioned that, as creative director of the Center's electronic journal, Transnational Broadcasting Studies (TBS), Prof. Friedlander had played an instrumental role in establishing the exciting visual image for this publication, which has gone on to secure a global audience among mass communication scholars, journalists, and leading figures of the satellite TV industry.

Responding, Prof. Friedlander thanked the Provost and stressed the satisfaction he felt at participating in the creation of environment for photojournalism that was not to be found elsewhere in the country, alluding to the key role played by photojournalism in informing the public of what is happening in the wider world. Prof. Friedlander pointed to the current Sony Gallery exhibition of photographs by Amr Nabil, Baghdad before the Bombs Begin to Fall, as a timely reminder of photojournalism's importance.

Guests at the celebration, hosted by Adham Center director Abdallah Schleifer, who prefaced the Provost's remarks with his own warm words of appreciation for Friedlander's contributions, included Dr. Mohamed Farouk El Hitami, AUC's vice president for student affairs, Dr. Hussein Amin, Journalism and Mass Communication chairman, Galal Zaki, TBWA/RAAD/RO'YA partner and Egyptian advertising doyen, painter Mansoura Hassan, Giuseppe Fanfoni, restorer of the Mevlevi sama'khana, and photographer/designer Paolo Boulous, as well as Adham Center staff.