Kahlil Gibran (1883-1931) was a Lebanese painter, poet, essayist and philosopher. Born in an isolated village in Mount Lebanon Mutasarrifate, he was destined to spend most of his life away from his beloved motherland. As he turned twelve, his mother took them to the USA, where he started his formal education. Within a short while, he was noticed by the avant-garde artist and photographer, Fred Holland Day, under whose mentorship he began to flourish. But on realizing that he was being influenced too much by western culture his mother sent him back to Beirut so that he learnt about his heritage. On his return to the USA, he resumed painting and had his debut exhibition at the age of twenty-one. Subsequently, he began to write, first in Arabic, later in English. His writings combined elements of the two heritages and brought him lasting fame. Although he is recognized more as an author than an artist, he had drawn more than seven hundred images. In spite of spending most of his life in the USA, he remained a Lebanese citizen and the welfare of his homeland was close to his heart.
