PARIS

Nasser SOUMI - ENTRE CIEL ET TERRE


Du vendredi 22 février au jeudi 14 mars

Beirut

Nedim Kufi, Edens


until february 9th , 2019

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Beirut

RETRO-PER-SPECTIVE by MARWAN CHAMAA


November 20th - December 8th, 2018

Mark Hachem Gallery - Beirut is delighted to present “RETRO-PER-SPECTIVE”, a solo exhibition by artist Marwan Chamaa, featuring his various interpretations of pop culture through select pieces past and present. Throughout his career, Marwan Chamaa’s art has fundamentally been his view of the world with an ironic and sometimes sarcastic undertone. Marwan, who has been painting for over 3 decades, embodies the spirit of a global citizen without overlooking his Middle Eastern roots. This is translated in his art and lifestyle that bridges the gap between East and West. The physical world is his muse. The French magazine, St. Tropez House, dubbed Marwan in their August 5, 2014 issue as the “King of Middle Eastern neo-pop art”, when referring to his series “Caramels, Superheroes, fried eggs and chocolates” which was then displayed in a gallery in Saint-Tropez. Accomplished New York photographer Carlos René Pérez considered his collaboration with Chamaa on the series “Unplugged” as some sort of a revelation. He says: “Uncertain of its ultimate direction I was somewhat circumspect, and curious as well, as to where this project might lead. Exceeding my expectations Marwan’s extraordinary paintings and his hyper-visual narrative led me back to my doorstep, my hometown, my New York City. Marwan Chamaa’s, Unplugged, has embraced NYC as a second home with all the warts and the foul scents it comes with. Ultimately my collaboration with Marwan teaches me that the mystery and beauty of New York City is only limited to the imagination of the artist who attempts to define it.” On his upcoming show “Retro-per-spective” Marwan explains his view on the concept saying “I’m supposed to write something witty about this exposition, about me painting for over 30 years, why my surroundings inspire me, about my love for pop-culture, my fascination with consumerism, my addiction to life, my love for kitsch, and about so many things that make me sound artistic... well, I’m not going to do that. You have to make up your own mind about my art, all I can say is: today is a perfect day “ The focus of RETRO-PER-SPECTIVE is Marwan’s recent work but it will also include some of his RETRO work dating back 30 years. The exposition will show his PER-SPECTIVE of pop-culture. Marwan Chamaa was born in Beirut in 1964 and has spent most of his adult life in Germany, Lebanon, and the USA. He studied art at the American University of Beirut, Beirut University College, and at the Corcoran School of Art in Washington DC. Chamaa participated in several group shows, art fairs, and auctions. His work has been displayed in Lebanon, France, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, and Kuwait and is being collected all over the globe.

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Beirut

SENSIBLE EXPRESSION BY ALFRED BASBOUS


October 25 - November 20, 2018

Location: Mark Hachem Gallery - Beirut

Mark Hachem Gallery is delighted to present an exhibition of relief and sculpture by artist Alfred Basbous (1924 – 2006). A major pioneer of Modernist sculpture in the Middle East, Basbous drew on the influence of Jean Arp, Constantin Brâncuși and Henry Moore to create stone and bronze sculptures of often monumental proportions. The exhibition brings together a series of sculptures from the 1960's to the 2000's, which demonstrate Basbous’ exploration of the relationship between form and material. A selection of Basbous’ preparatory drawings which reveal his approach to relief and sculpture are also exhibited. Sculptor Alfred Basbous (1924 - 2006) was born in Rachana, Lebanon. His works express a lifelong exploration of the human form and its abstract properties. Throughout his life, Basbous won many awards including the Prix de l'Orient in Beirut in 1963 and the prize for the Alexandria Biennale in 1974. Upon his death, the President of the Lebanese Republic awarded him the Medal of the Lebanese Order of Merit in Gold. A national stamp of Alfred Basbous and his two brothers Michel and Youssef, also sculptors, was released in 2011 by the Lebanese State as a tribute to their contribution to Lebanese culture. The works of Alfred Basbous are part of the permanent collection of the Alfred Basbous Foundation in Rachana, Lebanon and are featured in many private and public collections, including the Musée Rodin, Paris, the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, the Hakone Open-Air Museum in Japan and the Modern and Contemporary Art Museum (MACAM) in Lebanon, among others. His monumental works are present in the public areas of Beirut and many other Lebanese cities.

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Paris

Hamed Abdalla, "Le Caire - Paris"


16 octobre - 30 novembre 2018

Location: 44 rue des Tournelles 75004 & 28 Place des Vosges 75003

A partir du 16 octobre, la galerie Mark Hachem présente une exposition rétrospective de Hamed Abdalla (1917-1985) dans ses deux galeries à Paris. Depuis quelques années, la redécouverte de ce grand maitre égyptien du XXe s’est considérablement accélérée. Ses oeuvres viennent d’intégrer les collections de la TATE et vont entrer prochainement dans d’autres collections publiques internationales prestigieuses. L’exposition "Le Caire - Paris" est conçue comme une rétrospective qui permet de découvrir l’extraordinaire évolution de l’artiste sur 40 années de création. Elle ne comporte que des chefs-d’oeuvre rares et historiques de l’artiste. C’est un des événements majeurs de la semaine de l’art.

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BEIRUT

The Warriors by Antonio Signorini


Sept 17 - Oct 3, 2018

Location: Mark Hachem Gallery - Beirut

Mark Hachem Gallery - Beirut is delighted to present “The Warriors, The Guardians of the Heritage”, a solo exhibition by Italian artist Antonio Signorini, featuring a selection of his most recent works. Art writer and journalist Anna Seaman writes: “Standing at life size and elevated on plinths, the seven bronze warrior figures ooze dynamism. Their limbs carry movement through their angular forms and although the place where their eyes should be is hollow, their connection with the viewer is certain. The hollowed segments in the eye area are repeated at the hips and on parts of the back. This creates uncertainty as well as balance and movement; it also allows the viewer to experience each piece as a character. Without eyes or complete anatomy, the audience’s mind fills in the missing blanks and the warriors seem vulnerable as well as strong.” Signorini’s warriors are strong, modern and linear. Their clean lines create equilibrium and movement; they are all created in dynamic poses - running, hunting and posturing. Cut segments in the area of the eyes and the back create an angular feeling and missing sections at the hips create abstraction and a beautiful balance between two halves. The spears, bow and arrows have been created using advanced experimental archaeology methods that derive from the same processes used in that period. The artist sourced stone and antique wood from the region and made the objects using our understanding of processes from the past. This collection has been created as a journey of the artist and as a metaphor for human life as a journey in itself. “The precious beauty of the chosen material, the research of symmetries, the creation of perfection in the smooth convexity suggest that the unknown makers were growing a need that was going beyond the simple usefulness of tools. These forms of higher handicraft - evidence that archaic man has migrated from the African plains to the Saudi Arabian desert - might reveal the original nucleus from which art stems. More than any other science, the study of prehistory grants an incredible access to imagination, contrasting with the objectivity of scientific data”, the artist explains. Born in Tuscany in 1971, Antonio Signorini’s journey started with sharing his father’s passion for art. Today, Signorini lives in Dubai where he finds the coexistence of ancient remnants of civilizations and ultra-modern architectural complexes hugely inspirational. Working next to one of the world’s most unique skylines and in a place that is still discovering its own history has given the artist the chance to draw a thread through history, archeology, artistic research and development of art pieces as well as continue to explore the flux between public and private urban spaces.

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Beirut

Journeys into the Future through the Sea of the Past by Nasr-eddine Bennacer


Location: Mark Hachem Gallery - Beirut

An exhibition curated by Sumesh Sharma and Joud Halawani Al Tamimi, “Journeys into the Future Through the Sea of the Past” is the Algerian artist Nacer’s response to the current global situation. Bringing together installations, paintings, video and photography, Al-Tamimi writes: “This exhibition probes notions of identity and borders in relation to geopolitics and violence, but also with respect to the individual psyche. At a time when division trumps mobilization, and conflict and prejudice are rampant, this exhibition presents an apt and necessary inquiry into the politics of the neoliberal order, albeit by way of a largely personal and intimate journey.” The artist tackles profound questions on the evolution of links between civilizations and cultures. He also looks deeply at the ambiguity that exists in human relationships and interaction. This exploration focuses on the forms of manipulation and exploitation of conflicts, either for the individual or at a more global scale: Is the aggressor always the one demonstrating power or influence or do either political and economic forces interfere through sentiment and the intellect?, creating tensions between an ideology and its realization.

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Paris

Michelangelo Bastiani - REAZIONE IMPOSSIBILE


24.05.18 to 07.06.18

Location: Paris

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PARIS

YVES HAYAT - FEMMES AU BORD DE LA CRISE DE GUERRE


April 27th - May 17th

Location: Paris

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BEIRUT

In the Memory of the Ones Who Won't Make it by Jacques Vartabedian


April 19, 2018 - May 10, 2018

Location: Mark Hachem Gallery - Beirut

For the last few months, it has become a part of our daily routine to watch or hear of things related to political campaigns, constantly seeing billboards filled with faces we have come to know, some of which are new, and some of which have been ruling for a decade or two now. To Jacques, this exhibition examines the presence of the politicians’ portraits in our daily lives. It questions the circulation of those images and the response of the public to these visual impressions. By highlighting the complex inter relationships between the individual and the represented images and other socio- historical/political factors, he is also highlighting the contradictory perceptions of freedom. Throughout some of the works, Jacques reconstructs the destiny of these political election posters after the elections are done and gone. The ones who won’t make it are erased, ripped off the wall and forgotten, until the next campaigns are in order of course. But the ones who did make it will be implemented in our daily lives once more.

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Paris

Anthony MIRIAL - PARADIS PERDU


Exposition du 11 au 25 Avril, 2018

L’exposition se divise en deux séries articulées autour d’un sujet commun : le voyage. Un voyage en métro qui fait écho à un autre voyage, la mort... La première série présentée, « Blessures de guerre » (2016) met en scène des personnages oniriques, frappés en plein corps par les attentats du 13 novembre 2015. Qu’ils semblent libérés dans l’éther céleste, ou bien figés dans une pierre criblée de balles, ils témoignent tous d’une ville blessée, portant en leur corps, par transparence, les séquelles physiques d’une guerre idéologique... « Le spleen de Paris » (2017-2018), seconde série de l’exposition, et présentée en exclusivité, se distingue par son travail sur le réel ; Mirial photographie des inconnus dans le métro parisien, avant de les ramener dans son univers, passant d’une vision du corps (« posé ») à des corps (« volés »)… Une première pour l’artiste ! De cet abîme d’âmes tristes, vides ou aspirées par la technologie se dégage toute la beauté sensible de cette oeuvre. La composition de tout cela est singulière : des tableaux interchangeables, composés de wagons de métro assemblés, qui, mis bout à bout forme une seule et même œuvre évolutive de près de 8 mètres !

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Beirut

WRITINGS BY GEORGE MERHEB


March 15 - March 31, 2018

Location: Mark Hachem Gallery - Beirut

Mark Hachem Gallery - Beirut is delighted to present “Writings”, a solo exhibition by Lebanese artist George Merheb, featuring a new body of works. Haunted by letters, and their dimension in time and space, their energy beyond their shape, George Merheb offers a systematic demolition of traditional writings in his works for the benefit of a new global language. Daisy Abi Jaber writes: “For George Merheb, writing and drawing have shared destinies. He juggles with lines, colors and letters with a dizzying mixture of features and curves. His brush navigates the canvas in a falsely chaotic way, eliminating alphabets, codified drawings that refer to ideas or simply an expression or impression that becomes a performance. Merheb’s rebellion against words and the norm of their significance proposes a new insight into the artist’s manifestation, without falling into the rules and codes of their everyday usage. The brush strokes dance their way through the canvas to surpass what we are so accustomed to seeing with letters and words. Abi Jaber continues to write “...This pictorial Babel questions the articulation between the plurality of languages and alphabets; transforming themselves permanently, as immobile and sometimes as abstract, but still animated by a supernatural magic of the artist’s gestures and actions proving that creativity never fades. A single piece of data can create thousands of perspectives and can exceed all the borders of the world.” . studied in Venice, Italy from 1992 96. Merheb’s work has been featured in numerous solo and group exhibitions throughout Europe and the Arab world. George has also participated in several international fairs in France, Switzerland, Egypt and Lebanon. ,- Born in Lebanon in 1960, Merheb has obtained a master’s degree in drawing and painting from the Lebanese University of Beirut, Lebanon He then to 19 His most noted accomplishments include limited edition lithography’s at the “National Museum” of Beirut, - Lebanon, a 450m2 painting of murals for “Chantier Fence” in Beirut Central District and 250m2 paintings of murals at “St Antoine Church” Baabdat Lebanon.

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Beirut

Transformation by Chaouki Chamoun


February 1, 2018 - February 22, 2018

Location: Mark Hachem Gallery - Beirut

Mark Hachem Gallery - Beirut is delighted to present “Transformation”, a solo exhibition by artist Chaouki Chamoun, featuring a selection of his most recent works. Upon a visit to Chamoun’s studio, Akel Awitt had the chance to study the truly magnificent new series after which he wrote: “I prefer not to stand long in front of Chamoun’s paintings so that I am not jealous, so that I do not burn and drown. I flee from it and into it so that it does not pull me into its ropes; those infernal ropes. It infuriates me that he is ahead of me, that he is intriguing and bold. That he takes me out of my own self, so that I become part of the painting, of its atmosphere and mixture.”

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Paris

DECOMPOSITIONS DU MOUVEMENT BY SON SEOCK


Opening Reception: December 14th, 2017 | | December 15th, 2017 - January 5th, 2018

Location: 28 Place des Vosges, 75003 Paris

La Galerie Mark Hachem présente « Décompositions du mouvement » une exposition personnelle de l’artiste coréen Son Seock. Son Seock est né en Corée du Sud en 1955, et il vit et travaille en France depuis 1995. Ses œuvres appartiennent au monde des sensations visuelles : à chaque changement de position, le spectateur peut observer une transformation au niveau de la couleur, de la forme, et de la profondeur. Les images disparaissent et apparaissent en fonction de notre mouvement, et nous avons même l’impression qu’elles s’échappent du plan du tableau pour nous rejoindre dans le réel. Le spectateur devient engagé dans l’œuvre, fasciné par les effets surréels crées par le contraste entre les images aux premier et arrière plans, et aussi par l’aspect tactile, achevé par l’utilisation du pointillisme. L’œuvre de Son Seock transcende la peinture traditionnelle, et développe de nouvelles méthodes, tout en se tenant à l’écart d’un monde qui devient graduellement plus centré sur les médias digitaux et la photographie. Les lignes verticales créent l’illusion : elles ne sont pas réparties au hasard, mais sont le résultat d’une pensée mathématique et logique de la part de l’artiste. L’importance des sujets, par exemple, les éléphants et la céramique est alors réduite ; Son Seock ne les représente pas au premier plan, mais les introduit presque comme des objets-fantômes. Cependant, une telle minimisation du narratif fixe n’illustre pas un manque de signification, puisqu’elle permet le spectateur de se concentrer plutôt sur l’esthétique et le figuratif. Les œuvres tactiles de Son Seock exposent la qualité immatérielle des objets. En établissant un lien entre les images et le fond tactile, l’artiste suggère un renversement de la logique. Lorsque le vase disparaît, le spectateur se rend compte du chaos de la perception et de sa relativité. Ainsi, Son Seock permet a son public de découvrir l’écart entre ce qui existe, et ce qui n’existe pas, entre le visible et l’invisible.

Paris

CHROMESTHESIA by Ghazi Baker


Opening Reception: November 23rd, 2017 | | November 24th - December 5th, 2017

Location: 28 Place des Vosges, 75003 Paris

Galerie Mark Hachem presents the second major exhibition of Beirut based architect and artist, Ghazi Baker. Chromesthesia presents sixteen new large and medium scale paintings from the artist's most recent body of works. Experimenting with and transliterating his emotions and expression of some of his favorite music into visual contexts, Baker's works transport the viewer into a world where sounds meet colors and shapes.

BEIRUT

IMPERMANENCE by Wolfgang Stiller


Opening Reception: November 14th, 2017 | | November 15th - November 30th, 2017

Location: Mark Hachem Gallery - Beirut

Mark Hachem Gallery-Beirut is delighted to present “Impermanence”, a solo exhibition by German artist Wolfgang Stiller, featuring a rich body of works expressed through sculptures, drawings and vast installations. Internationally known for his matchstick-men series, Stiller’s inspiration is derived from materials having a specific purpose or meaning and from diverse interests such as Buddhism and travel. The impermanence of human existence and a reflection on who we really are, are among the various themes treated in his current works.

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Paris

PROVOCATIVE MOODS by Robert Farber


Vernissage: Vendredi 10 Novembre 2017 || Exposition du 11 au 21 Novembre, 2017

Location: 28 Place des Vosges 75003 Paris

La Galerie Mark Hachem présente « Provocative Moods » une exposition personnelle de Robert Farber sous le commissariat de Géraldine Beigbeder. L’exposition présente « THE DETERIORATION SERIES - une collaboration avec le temps » ; Une série des photos classiques de Farber prisent entre les années 70 et 90 qui ont été naturellement détériorées par le temps. Aucune retouche ou manipulation n’ont été effectuées, uniquement le processus naturel de détérioration. Le style de ROBERT Farber a influencé des générations de photographes à travers ses expositions internationales dans des galeries et des musées. Ses dix livres d'art classique se sont vendus à plus d'un demi-million d'exemplaires. Il a travaillé avec Jackie Kennedy Onassis, Larry Flynt entre autres. La reconnaissance mondiale de Robert Farber a été établie à travers ses livres, ses expositions d'art, ses conférences, ses interviews télévisées et ses campagnes publicitaires primées. Tous dans les genres de la mode, de la beauté et du style de vie. Le travail de Farber sur les nus artistiques ainsi que dans le domaine commercial est connu et respecté. Il a donné des conférences à Ogilvy & Mather sur le «Nu dans la publicité». L'ASMP a demandé d'utiliser les nus de Farber comme exemple de l'application artistique en faveur de la National Endowment of Arts, après son soutien à la controversée exposition Mapplethorpe / Serrano. Son livre, "Farber Nudes", a également été inclus dans la collection Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. Robert Farber enseigne au Smithsonian Institute, à la George Eastman House, ainsi qu'à des universités et des groupes professionnels à travers les États-Unis, le Japon, l'Australie et l'Europe. Un documentaire sur la vie et la carrière de Farber est en cours de développement pour PBS.

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Paris

Why do Arabs Have to Speak ? !


Vernissage Mardi 24 Octobre à partir de 18h30

Location: Galerie Mark Hachem - 28 Place des Vosges

La Galerie Mark Hachem - Paris présente «Why Do Arabs Have to Speak?», Une exposition de groupe présentant les œuvres des artistes Sabhan Adam, Nasser Soumi, Alfred Basbous, Nadine Khoury, Hamed Abdalla, Zied Ben Romdhane, Amina Zoubir et Nasreddine Ben Nacer. Les artistes se réunissent pour répondre aux questions concernant le modernisme à travers des histoires profondément personnelles qui nous parlent de leurs interactions avec l'État et de sa trajectoire culturelle.

Paris

Stephen Peirce, Nascent States


10.10.17- 16.12.17

Location: Mark Hachem - 44 rue des Tournelles 75003 Paris

La galerie Mark Hachem présente les peintures à l’huile de l’artiste anglais Stephen Peirce. Quand l’inanimé s'agrège en un tout vivant, organique, qui nous semble familier mais que nous ne pouvons pourtant identifier… Au delà d’une technique parfaite, d’une maitrise exceptionnelle de la couleur et de la lumière, les peintures de Peirce montrent un univers absolument unique. Dans la tradition des maitres du passé, avec une facture hyperréalisme - quasi 3D - Stephen Peirce peint un futur dont on ne veut pas, nous prévient de sa probable fatalité tout en imaginant son étrange beauté. Virtuose et déroutant. **** The gallery Mark Hachem presents the oil paintings of the English artist Stephen Peirce. Contemplating Peirce's paintings is like a vision of the inanimate growing into a living, organic whole, which seems familiar to us but which we can not yet identify... Beyond a perfect technique, an exceptional mastery of color and light, the paintings of Peirce show an absolutely unique universe. In the tradition of the masters of the past, with a hyperrealistic - almost 3D - touch, Stephen Peirce paints a future without humanity, warns us of its probable fatality and imagines its strange beauty. Virtuoso and enigmatic.

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BEIRUT

"OF THINGS TO COME" by NAZAR YAHYA


Opening Reception: September 22nd, 2017 | | September 23rd - October 15th, 2017

Location: Mark Hachem Gallery - Beirut

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