Contemporary Perspectives in Middle Eastern Crafts

Carwan Gallery is pleased to announce its participation in Ventura-Lambrate during Milan Design week, to be held April 16th to 22st, 2012, in Italy. For the occasion, Carwan Gallery will present “Contemporary Perspectives in Middle Eastern Crafts”, a groundbreaking project exploring new avenues in design. A selection of international designers and their recent work, conceptualized with traditional craft techniques of the Middle East, will be featured. The designers are Karen Chekerdjian (Lebanon), Khalid Shafar (UAE), Lindsey Adelman (USA), Mischer & Traxler (Austria), Nada Debs (Lebanon), Nayef Francis (Lebanon), Oeuffice (Italy), Paul Loebach (USA), Philippe Malouin (Canada) and Tamer Nakisci (Turkey). With a concept that seeks to expand the vocabulary of traditional crafts, Carwan has commissioned designers from the Middle East and beyond to create a series of new, limited-edition objects in partnership with local artisans in the Middle East. Each designer’s project encapsulates the re-imagining of a distinct, time-honored craft, where the specialized technique of each artisan has formed the basis for the creation of a new object by the designer. This unique collaboration between artisan and designer highlights the richness of Middle Eastern craftsmanship as well as its capabilities for contemporary design. Carwan began as the first pop-up gallery in the Middle East. Established in Beirut, the gallery exhibits limited-edition pieces in art and design events throughout the world, with a focus on internationalizing design in the Middle East. In exhibitions as well as in its primary Beirut space, Carwan features the work of international cuttingedge designers of unique contemporary objects such as limited-edition furniture, lighting, and objets d’art. Founded by the architects Pascale Wakim and Nicolas Bellavance-Lecompte in 2010, Carwan also provides cultural and educational programming in keeping with its mission, encouraging students, artisans, designers, and the public at large to connect with each other and the world of design in the Middle East