Most of us pay little heed to that weird building we pass by on our way to BIEL or the new waterfront. That building is the Beirut Exhibition Center and on Saturday, right before sailing off on Underrated’s Overrated boat party, Lori and I went there to discover their latest exhibit “Glasstress” which is staying in Beirut till September the 2nd.
To be honest, I was not expecting much. Perhaps a few before-after shots of wartorn buildings, the usual cedar or two, you know, the usual photos Lebanese folks go crazy about. If not that, the usual meaningless crap that is supposed to be interpreted as something meaningful.
But, I was extremely delighted to see I couldn’t have been more wrong. They were all sculptures, fixtures and installations with glass as the main component. Some were awesome surrealist ones, like a glass blob flowing out of a desk lamp, or a dining table with the fork, spoon, knife and plate areas cut out of the glass.
But, the highlights of the exhibit for me were the biology0inspired ones. One was a large-scale mode of an E.Coli bacterium, complete with RNA strands on the inside. LOVED IT! Others were an ovum surrounded my sperm cells in several shades and stages.
Another two I loved was one very powerful message conveyed by arranging police batons (used to beat up protestors) made of glass (which wil shatter when used) into a massive heart-shape… Another was a crimson chandelier which had fallen to the ground and shattered the pieces, with ravens eating up its flesh-like red pieces.
All in all, loved it. Go check it out, you can take photos and it’s free entrance.
