What do you do when you are a hip cultured 20 something living in Beirut bored stiff with what is on offer on the Art establishment’s high street? Or a trendy 40 year old still rebelling and kicking? Art Lounge is a bohemian and cheerful contemporary art space with a following hungry for groundbreaking and innovative creations.

To that end, Art Lounge has set up shop since 1998 on the roomy 900 sq. m first floor of an industrial complex and comprises of a main gallery/lounge, a bar, a bookstore, a concert space and an art store. Art Lounge is not just a café and it is not your traditional art gallery. The couches and fauteuils on offer invite the leisurely to stay a while and explore. This is a perfect meeting point and the brain behind this creative environment with a difference is self-confessed art aficionado Nino Azzi, the author of  “Beirut Street Art”.

Since international star Banksy started scribbling all over the walls of the big Western Metropolis, graffiti has increasingly been a force to reckon with in the Avant-Garde. And this street art with a socio-political appeal has started popping up in Beirut’s urban landscape… and in Art Lounge’s factory rooms. Street Art/ Pop Art is the theme of the month; an exhibition is currently dedicated to these new Graffiti artists and there is also a screening every Sunday of films dedicated to these fresh and inventive stencils designers. To top it all off, the official Beirut Street Art book will be launching on the 13^th of February. Want to rub shoulders with stars from the Beirut street art scene? Rek Crew, P&G Crew & Ashekman Soldiers are all expected to attend.

Nino Azzi wanted to create an alcove dedicated to Art for Art Lovers: “I wanted to make art accessible”. Pari conclus?  I bet.

Wriiten by Valerie Pezeron

Images courtesy of  Art Lounge

For more information, please visit Art Lounge