Studio Beirut is a public space in itself: a meeting place, think tank, communications channel for the dialogue between people from different ethnic and socio-economical groups and a platform for an open debate. Studio Beirut initiates the debate by means of initiating various projects and programs, publishing the magazine NOISE in close cooperation with Archis/Volume, maintaining a website and organizing activities like an international and multidisciplinary summer school, an international architecture competition and city tours guided by an architect. This makes Studio Beirut not only a think tank but also an action tank of people that initiate projects for the development of the public space.

Studio Beirut develops an infrastructure with a broad outreach potential by combining a fixed location with a flexible component: A bus will deliver the program to different parts of the country.

Studio Beirut is a foundation, established by Lebanese young professionals (architects, urban planners and designers) in close cooperation with the Dutch organizations Archis, Partizan Publik and Pearl and former director of political and cultural center De Balie in Amsterdam, Chris Keulemans and Ole Bouman, director of the Dutch Architecture institute. 

Pearl president, Nienke Nauta, is based in Lebanon since May 5 to organize an international workshop about public space in Lebanon together with Studio Beirut. Furthermore she's working in the South of Lebanon, in the village Tayr Debba on the realization of a computerproject and a playground with a park (see also Projects, Tayr Debba).

The workshop 'Public space?' will take place from August 17 till August 31 in Beirut, the North and the South of Lebanon. An international faculty with lecturers and critics from Lebanon, Holland, Norway and the USA will explore the concept of public space in Lebanon together with a group of 30 participants from Lebanon, Germany, Swiss, Holland, USA, Slovenia, Aruba, Egypt and Russia. In an attempt to define the notion of public space in Lebanon the participants will follow the old Lebanese railway. The participants will work on locations that have the potential to become a public space. After the workshop we will organize an international competition to generate an executable plan for one of these potential public spaces. 

 
Curious? The opening debate at August 18 and the final debate with Pearls in Lebanon which takes place at August 31 in The Order of Engineers and Architects in Beirut (moderated by Ole Bouman, director of the Dutch Architectural Institute), will be open to a broader audience. Please check the programme at www.pearl-foundation.com or download it from the Studio Beirut website: www.studiobeirut.org.

In collaboration with:

The Order of Engineers and Architects, Beirut

With a financial contribution of:

Fonds Werken aan Wonen (financial support programme for social housing)

Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Beirut

Claus en Kaan Architecten

ARGUS, studentsassociation, Architectural faculty, TU Delft

For more information about the initiators and organizers see also:

www.pearl-foundation.com 

www.studiobeirut.org (with live stream broadcasting in the second week of the workshop)

www.archis.org

www.partizanpublik.nl