Beirut - An update four months after the blast
Four months after the explosion, the Beirut arts sector is far from being back to normal. On 4th August 2020 a ‘historically’ powerful blast killed at least 204 people and damaged a significant part of the city. Caused by an explosive substance stored that was stored without security measures in the port area of the city, the explosion came on the back of longstanding political and economic turmoil in the country. The last year alone has seen anti-government protests and a nationwide cash crunch that caused a run on the banks. Beirut's art community has had to be creative as it adapts to the shocks and crises of the last year.
Many galleries, museums and studios have been damaged, with those located near the port, such as Marfa’, the most affected. The founding director Joumana Asseily has started the rebuilding process and plans to reopen in 2021 at the same location. As a young gallery and a frequent exhibitor at international art fairs such as Art Basel, Frieze and Artissima, the explosion was another blow in a year already lost to the coronavirus. Yet, speaking recently, Asseily emphasised the need to be creative as a way of overcoming the current situation. The gallery is building an online presence, while they explore possibilities for using VR. ‘We need to open up our model, which is challenging but also interesting’, she says. In this spirit, Marfa’ has also been looking at organising pop-up events – recently she was a guest at two Parisian galleries, In Situ and Marcelle Alix during FIAC.
Marfa’ at In Situ with works by Lamia Tamara Al Samerraei and Paola Yacoub. Courtesy of the artist and Marfa. Photograph by Matt Frenot
International solidarity has been an essential part of the aftermath. The German-Lebanese gallery Sfeir-Semler, with spaces in both Beirut and Hamburg, received hundreds of messages and letters of support. The director Andrée Sfeir-Semler has been fundraising for the Beirut art sector by writing to large institutions and private collectors
She has also been an advisor to Christies, who organised the online auction ‘We Are All Beirut’ that took place between the 11th and 24th November. The sale was announced just a few days after the explosion. According to Carolin Louca-Kirkland, the managing director of Christie's Middle East, the response from potential sellers was both heartening and overwhelming. The profits of the auction will go to the Arab Fund For Arts & Culture (AFAC) with the aim to support the cultural and artistic restoration of Beirut.
The current exhibition ‘Sweet Talks’ by Walid Raad explores the recent war heritage of Lebanon and experiences of violence. Courtesy of the artist & Sfeir-Semler Gallery Beirut/Hamburg
Sfeir-Semler’s gallery in Beirut was only a kilometre away from the exposition and rebuilding has been a challenge; because of current bank restrictions, it’s hard to pay builders and technicians. One way around the situation is to create ‘fresh accounts’ with recently transferred US dollars from abroad, which allow for transfers and limited daily cash withdrawals. There is a two currency system, the Lebanese pound and US dollars, with the sky-high exchange rate of LL8,225 to $1 on the black market (value from 25th November) and an official inflation rate of 136% in October. Sfeir-Semler tells me that the gallery is lucky to have a German account to pay its artists and employees. Beyond that, the only reason to reopen the gallery is to give people hope. With the current crisis there is no market left.
Lastly, I spoke with the artist Haig Aivazian, who, together with Ahmad Ghossein, is the co-director at Beirut Art Center. Even though the Art Center only suffered ‘minor’ damage, with it’s gate and a structural wall being blown off, Aivazian tells me that it is only just functioning. As the private funding has dropped over the last year, the Center has been downsizing and rethinking its programme. Already before the pandemic, the Center started generating conversations around the import economy of Lebanon and working to develop a rooftop garden initiative to foster food sovereignty. With the recent crises, the Center has been prioritising paying people and has developed a series of paid micro-commissions. There has also been a focus on creating tangible skills, such as high quality exhibition production, as well as on initiatives to create supplies locally. As a projector lamp currently costs $400 on the black market, the Center has been bringing in local electricians to find ways of building such equipment thereby giving the money to the workers rather than to pay for imports. Meanwhile, a new exhibition ‘To live and to let live’ by Mohamed Berro opened its doors at the Center. 'The opening day's slots were full, with over a hundred visitors', Aivazian tells me, ‘people say it’s nice to have something to see, somewhere to go’.
Words Polina Chiznova