During almost three years of forced closure after the double explosion at the port of Beirut, the Venetian-Ottoman inspired museum had to undergo a series of reparations and rehabilitations to be functional again after the Beirut Port explosion.
A symbol of the Sursock family’s rich history, the Sursock Palace,now one of the premier contemporary and modern art museums in the Middle East, is an important heritage landmark in Beirut known for its unique architecture, artisanry, and art. Located under 500 meters from the site of the 4 August 2020 blast, the building was heavily damaged. The Sursock Museum in the center of Beirut first opened in 1961, with a mission to collect, preserve, and exhibit local and international art.
Its restoration will have required two and a half years of work for a budget of nearly two and a half million dollars, financed by Italy, via the Li Beirut initiative supported by Unesco, the French Ministry of Culture and Aliph, the International Alliance for the Protection of Heritage in Conflict Areas. And the meticulous know-how of several art masters.
Only the access doors to the living room still bear the scars of the explosion. As for the damaged works, they have all returned to the collection. “Three works have been restored by the Center Pompidou, fifty paintings as well as sculptures have been restored locally. The works on paper were restored by Caroline Gelot, from the National Heritage Institute. »
Image : Copyright 2015 Joe Kesrouani
Anna Melnykova, "Palace of Labor (palats praci), architector I. Pretro, 1916", shot with analog Canon camera, 35 mm Fuji film in March 2022.
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