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CEDAR WINGS
XXeme Siecle Art Gallery
The Furniture of Lebanon’s Golden Age
“Ever since I was 14,” says Souheil Hanna, “I was possessed-with a passion for antiques, that is! On returning to Lebanon, my sister Hala and I wanted to launch a project that’s not mainstream, to make available again a furniture style other the widely available 17th, 18th, and 19th century antiques in the region-namely, furniture of the 1950’s-70’s. we were amazed by what Beirut had to offer”.
It was thus that “Vingtieme Siecle”, the 20th century antiques gallery and the only one in the Middle East specialized in 1950’s-70’s furniture, opened in the heart of Beirut in April 2002. Both passionate about interior design and antiques, then twenty-something Souheil and Hala Hanna had lived and studied in Paris before returning to their native Beirut. In hindsight, it seems inevitable that XXeme Siecle would open where it did, in Hamra area, a cosmopolitan high fashion center in 1950’s, 60’s, and 70’s Lebanon.
The risk Souheil and Hala took was certainly worth taking. No sooner did we at Cedar Wings find out what made that gallery’s heart beat-the restoration of culture and the seal of authenticity than we became instant fans. Be prepared: its owners’ enthusiasm is contagious! Of course, the fact that their items are very appealing, and that 80% of them are Lebanese, helps. They sought in Paris and flea markets worldwide the items that they couldn’t find in Beirut.
“Our aim is to offer the Lebanese and Arab public authentic representative 20th century furniture and “objects d’art”, particularly from Lebanon of the 1950’s-70’s, its Golden Age,” says Souheil Hanna. In those decades, Lebanon was prosperous, modern, and elegant. Beautiful furniture was being imported from Italy and France, and Beirut hotels ordered specially designed furniture by foreign designers. Soon enough, a number of those famous French and Italian designers elected Beirut as their Middle East headquarters. These two decades, in Beirut as well as in Europe and the US, witnessed the artistic movements that shaped our notion of modernity: simple lines, new materials liberated forms. The 1950’s, he explains, was really the beginning of the era of design. It marked the rise of ‘designers’, who replaced craftsmen as mass production became the norm: “when the US liberated Europe at the end of WWII, it introduced two new concepts: comfort and democratization. This meant that everyone had the right to a comfortable, affordable sofa. The US also introduced new materials for furniture, such as latex, foam, false fur, skai, Plexiglass, and a new internal wire structure. Furniture took on new shape and functionality, brighter colors, fluid lines, lighter woods, and funny shapes to counteract postwar depression,” he says.
In many senses a museum, XXeme Siecle offers today’s young generation the chance to discover the furniture and memorabilia of their parents’ times. The gallery’s strength is restoring antiques as they are, leaving the scars of time on them as a stamp of authenticity. Staying true to the spirit of the designer requires knowledge, hard work, and dedication.
When an antique sofa has a missing piece of fabric, Hanna pursues the fabric’s exact match in color, shape, and texture all over the world. As such, Parting with a piece, and this demonstrates XXeme Siecle’s essentially cultural aim, is not easy. He says: “when we sell a piece, we photograph and archive it-and sometimes visit it once in a while in its new home!”
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