Saving a Home Saving a City
This is a photographic record of French Lebanese architect Annabel Karim Kassar’s installation recreating part of the façade of the late 19th century Bayt K House, a traditional Ottoman era building in the historic quarter of Gemmayzeh, Beirut. While undergoing restoration in 2020 by her architectural practice AKK, Bayt K was damaged by the Beirut Port explosion. Sarkis Khoury, Director General of Antiquities in Lebanon’s Ministry of Culture, confirmed that at least 8,000 historic buildings were damaged in the explosion including Bayt K House and the Palais Sursock. The latter, also dating from the 19th century, is located in Achrafieh and is one of the country’s grandest residences. Disrupted but undeterred, the architect has worked with Beiruti craftspeople using traditional Lebanese materials both to restore Bayt K and to recreate the house’s triple arched façade and entrance divan as a showpiece.
Nathalie Chahine and Fadlallah Dagher explain in their 2021 publication Houses of Beirut 1860 to 1925, “A very typical element of the houses, as in houses of Bilad al-Sham more generally, was the lwan or liwan. This is a room opening onto the courtyard through a wide arch.” Annabel states, “I believe the human-centred approach to designing interior spaces found in traditional cultures still has much to teach the modern world.” Her designs combine a modernist vocabulary with the language of traditional Arab, Berber and Ottoman culture and craftmanship.
18 replies on “Annabel Karim Kassar + The Lebanese House Beirut”
Wishing Annabel best wishes for this amazing restoration ! 👍🏽
Thanks for your comment Nadim.
Quite the coup! Great photographic record. Sounds like Annabel is doing a great job however adventurous it takes to be! Daisy x
Thank you Daisy it was a real thrill being invited to cover this exciting project. LVB X
Annabel is such a talented architect and designer.
She really is so talented and brave.
Great reconstruction
I read that the Sursock Palace is also being restored.
Just found it if this works…..
https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/homes-and-property/putting-beirut-s-sursock-palace-back-together-1.4661043
Good research! Thanks for sharing. The late Lady Yvonne Cochrane’s son Alfred Cochrane is of course himself a very distinguished architect and artist.
Annabel is a good friend of mine 🙂 and a star of the Lebanese heritage movement.
Un autre excellent article et si heureux de lire sur un architecte français. L’installation comme fragment d’architecture se lit bien. Elle est clairement une architecte intelligente avec une bonne imagination. Bien fait!
Beautifully scripted and illuminating.
Thank you for reading this article Firas. There is plenty more planned from London’s best wedding news to London’s best new hotel! LVB
Exciting !!
A very exciting project !
Definitely is can’t wait to see the full and final project in situ!
The name Annabel derives from
‘Favoured Grace’ so from one Annabel to another shine on like the diamonds we are ❤️
That’s the best case of nominative determinism ever! X