Modern and Contemporary Art Museum

MACAM, the Modern And Contemporary Art Museum, is a Lebanese institution dedicated to preserving and promoting Lebanese modern and contemporary art. Located in Alita, north of Beirut in the Byblos region, it opened in June 2013 within a former factory compound. Operated by a Lebanese NGO bearing the same name, MACAM occupies a distinctive position as a specialized venue focused on sculpture and installation art by artists born in or connected to Lebanon.

The museum was inaugurated in June 2013 in an industrial zone in Alita, north of Beirut. From its inception, MACAM was conceived as a space for preservation and promotion of Lebanese modern and contemporary art. The museum quickly established programming that included annual retrospectives honoring significant Lebanese sculptors. In 2014, it held exhibitions for Zaven, known for monumental and small-scale bronze works, and Youssef Basbous, recognized for his wood sculpture. The French Wikipedia source adds that in 2015, the museum honored Boulos Richa, a trained blacksmith who transformed iron pieces into figurative art. The museum also launched yearly sculpture competitions beginning in 2013 with "The Age of Bronze," followed by "The Age of Wood" in 2014 and "The Age of Iron" in 2015.

MACAM's holdings center on three-dimensional work by Lebanese artists. The collection comprises approximately 400 sculptures and installations by artists with Lebanese birth or residence. The English source cites 90 artists, while the French source specifies 65 artists. The permanent collection is distributed across two dedicated halls: one for sculpture and one for installations. The sculpture collection is organized by material, including wood, stone, steel, bronze, and ceramics. Many works are loans or donations from artists or their families.

The Sculpture Hall contains works organized by material. The wood sculpture room includes pieces by Youssef Basbous, Salwa Raouda Shoucair, Charles Khoury, Mouazzaz Rawda, Marwan Saleh, Ibrahim Zod, and Mohamad Darwish Sakr. The stone room features works by Ezzat Mezher, Wajih Nahle, Michel Basbous, Elias Bazouni, Hussein Madi, and Alfred Basbous. The steel and bronze room presents works by Ginane Makki Bacho, Raffoul Chahine, Leila Jabre-Jureidini, and Zaven. A ceramics section includes works by Dorothy Salhab Kazemi, May Ammoun, and Neville Assad Salha. The Installation Hall displays works by Mona Sehanoui, Ziad Abillama, Nabil Helou, Raouf Rifai, Mario Saba, and Nicole Younes.

MACAM is housed in a factory compound in Alita, an industrial area north of Beirut. The museum's Installation Hall alone covers 1,500 meters of indoor exhibition space, providing artists with dedicated room to preserve their installations. The repurposed industrial setting gives the museum a distinctive character among Lebanese cultural institutions.

The museum is open every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 12 am to 6 pm. It is operated by a Lebanese NGO and maintains an active public presence through MACAM news, a monthly newsletter reporting on museum activities. The museum's website is http://www.macamlebanon.org/.