After years of delays, Beirut's National Museum unveils the Nuhad Es-Said Pavilion for Culture
As Lebanon breathes a tentative sigh of relief in the midst of a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, the Nuhad Es-Said Pavilion for Culture aims to restore the National Museum of Beirut's pre-eminent position as the country's foremost cultural and historical institution, safeguarding past, present and future heritage. Made possible by the National Heritage Foundation – which has supported the renovation and preservation of the National Museum since the end of the Lebanese Civil War – in partnership with the Es-Said family, the pavilion is a new space dedicated to creative artistry, the dialogue between art and culture, and the importance of remembrance. Designed by architect Raed Abillama, the venue stands just off the south-western side of the famous National Museum building, joining a landmark that has overcome both conflicts and crises, manifesting the National Museum's continuing mission to champion Lebanon within its vibrant and airy exhibition halls. 'It feels great to be able to share this jewel with the people and to receive all these visitors after a very difficult time,' Lama Salam, part of the committee of the Nuhad Es-Said Pavilion, told The National. 'In Lebanon, you cannot make dates for anything unfortunately, but this is our way of life.' Originally planned to open in September with an official inauguration, the pavilion was forced to postpone following Israel's deadly pager attacks. The situation then rapidly deteriorated into all-out warfare, with Israeli bombs falling across both Beirut and Lebanon at large for months. While many other public events were cancelled and other institutions closed their doors, the pavilion elected to remain open, instead determined to provide residents with a reminder of Lebanon's rich cultural history, and a promise of brighter days to come. 'We took the decision to open to the public in order to guarantee the continuity of Lebanon's cultural heritage,' added Salam. 'I was visiting every day. For me, it was like a refuge; somewhere I could go and you have peace. It gave us hope that everything would end soon and we would be able to return to normality again. It's so many things in one beautiful space.' This opening also included the venue's inaugural exhibition, titled Portals and Pathways, A Journey Through Reality and Imagination. Conceived and curated by the Beirut Museum of Art (BeMA), this striking showcase has been designed around four thematic galleries – or "portals" – that bring together Lebanon's past and present, exploring the country's multifaceted identity while also celebrating its rich artistic legacy; a tribute to the beauty of both the land and its people. 'We didn't want to have us or BeMA alone,' explained Salam. 'We wanted to do something together, and the result was marvellous.' 'Despite the unimaginable circumstances the Nuhad Es-Said Pavilion for Culture and BeMA remained steadfast in our commitment," said BeMA co-director Juliana Khalaf Salhab. "This is a space where shared heritage and collective imagination could resist the silencing effects of violence.' The exhibition's design draws heavily from the architecture of the pavilion itself, in turn, inspired by the efforts of then-director of the National Museum of Beirut Maurice Chehab during the 1980s to protect the museum and its collections of artefacts during the Lebanese Civil War by erecting steel-reinforced concrete walls around the building. The first portal "Memory" examines the power of collective remembrance, reflecting on what is preserved and what is lost over time. It features a trio of restored works by Saloua Raouda Choucair, Omar Onsi's 1919 sketches of vanished views from his Tallet el Khayat home and Lamia Joreige's 2013 pinhole photographs of the Beirut National Museum. In dialogue, these artworks form a deep connection to one another, invoking themes of preservation, continuity and our own enduring attachments to time and place. "Myths" focuses on the timelessness of shared stories as they are reinterpreted, reinvented and iterated upon across generations through pieces such as Randa Mirza's dioramas based on forgotten pre-Islamic myths, and Said Akl's 1957 works unfolding the legend of Adonis, deeply rooted in Lebanese folklore. Meanwhile, "Perception" explores the interplay of reality and the illusive, inviting contemplation by challenging the boundaries of our experiences through modernist works by Helen El Khal and Elie Kanaan, juxtaposed against contemporary artists Daniele Genadry and Nasri Sayegh. The final portal – "Territory" – centres upon earth and water as natural forces, reflecting on the profound connection between the Lebanese people and their homeland. Omar Onsi's 1969 watercolours of Lebanese rock formations, shown alongside Lara Tabet's photographs of urban structures and Caroline Tabet's scanned water samples from the Lebanese coast, embody and celebrate Lebanon's natural beauty. 'Through the artists' interpretations, Lebanon's breathtaking, almost mythical landscapes unify the exhibition's overarching themes,' said Khalaf Salhab. These works are also accompanied by Hymne a L'Amour, a large-scale artistic installation by Alfred Tarazi that weaves together the artist's own personal heritage with notions of collective memory. Incorporating a selection of inherited craft objects – made from wood, copper and other traditional materials, taken from his family's 160-year-old Oriental craftsmanship business – in varying states of preservation and decay, paying homage to Tarazi's deep reverence for Levantine artisanry, and to his parents; Tarazi's mother was an archaeologist with the National Museum, while his father was a member of the famed Maison Tarazi. While the situation within Lebanon remains tense for now, the pavilion and its committee remains optimistic, buoyed by both the positive response of Beirutis visiting the new space, and the prospect of future developments. There's hope the centre will host international works and there are already plans for three more Lebanese exhibitions in 2025. 'We are very grateful to all the people that are visiting,' said Salam. 'We are so overwhelmed with all their comments about what they are feeling and what they are seeing, and I'm hoping that – now we are in peacetime – we will receive more and more visitors, both from within Lebanon and outside."
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