"There are two elements to Joe's style, playful and eclectic but also that of a thoughtful historian," says Joe Tohme's cousin and former business partner
Ramy Boutros, as we stand in the courtyard of the late antiques dealer's home outside Beirut. A revered and wellknown figure in the decorative arts world, Tohme was a collector par excellence with an unerring eye for the best Orientalist and Levantine antiques-and for creating striking vignettes.
On a road that leads towards the old coastal highway from Beirut to Batroun, Tohme's greatest passion project is halfhidden behind a forest of flower-covered vines. Beit Chabeb, a handsome stone house, gives little away at first glance, its stoic façade protecting what lies within.
Having once been a Catholic curate's house, according to Tohme's younger brother, Nabil, the building was in a sorry state when he stumbled upon it. "In fact, it was only one storey high; my brother had a vision to restore the house to its original height. The ground floor is 18th century, while the remains of the upper floor were 19th century." Ever exacting, Tohme "scoured reclamation yards and salvage sources around Beirut for architectural pieces that exactly matched the period of each floor", recounts Boutros.
"For him, it was like writing a poem with cadence and form, or perhaps the thrill of a puzzle. He loved a challenge." Tohme was born into an old Lebanese Druze family that is highly influential in the fine-art world, and visited galleries and antiques dealers with his bourgeois mother from a young age. His father was a well-known doctor and author, and the Franco-Levantine society Tohme grew up in was a near-vanished world of courtly manners and elegant interiors, the creak of parquet floors and cocktail chatter bouncing between French and English.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der July - August 2024-Ausgabe von AD Architectural Digest India.
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Diese Geschichte stammt aus der July - August 2024-Ausgabe von AD Architectural Digest India.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
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IT TAKES A VILLAGE
IN A TRADITIONAL, OPEN-TO-SKY COURTYARD HOME IN ANEGUNDI, NEAR HAMPI, HERITAGE CONSERVATIONIST, PAINTER AND FOUNDER OF THE KISHKINDA TRUST, SHAMA PAWAR LIVES AND REVITALIZES CRAFT TRADITIONS BORN FROM THE LAND'S RICH PAST.
MATKAS OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL FORM, RESIST-DYED SACRED CLOTHS HUNG AS TAPESTRIES, MUD PLASTER OR "LIPAI" WALLS, AND A JOURNEY IN COLOURS AND PODDAR AND EESHAAN PIGMENTS ANUPAM KASHYAP 'S DELHI HOME IS A PURSUIT OF A LAYERED, TACTILE BEAUTY.
Anupam Poddar and Eeshaan Kashyap's generous first-floor apartment in the shadow of Humayun's Tomb harks to a leisurely way of living.
CLASSIC BEIRUT HERITAGE AND GLAMOUR
A COLLECTOR AND ANTIQUE S DEALER, THE LATE HOME, BEIT CHABEB I N BEIRUT, IS A COMING JOE TOHMES GREATEST PASSION PROJECT, HIS TOGETHER OF THE RUSTIC AND THE REFINED.
LAL KOTHI
TEXTILE LOVERS PETER AND CECILE D'ASCOLI TRANSFORM THEIR DELHI FARMHOUSE INTO A KALEIDOSCOPIC FEAT OF COLOUR AND PATTERN.
ATELIERS DE FRANCE
More than 15 million spectators are expected to descend on Paris for the Olympic and Paralympic Games this summer, and they won't be there to see only the sporting events.
ON THE EARTH
On a bright, breezy afternoon at La Pelota in the heart of Milan-where Hermès holds its annual presentation every springBenoit Pierre Emery, the creative director of tableware, laid out a tray with pieces from the dinner service Tressages Équestres.
JAIN HANDICRAFTS OPENS A STORE IN AHMEDABAD, DESIGNED BY SAMIR WADEKAR, WITH A CURATED COLLECTION DRAWN FROM THEIR SEA OF ANTIQUES.
When Jain Handicrafts, a multigenerational family business dealing in period furniture and objets d'art, showcased their collection at the annual AD Design Show last year, they were amazed by the positive response they received from visitors.
MASTER WEAVER SHAMJI VANKAR TAKES A SLICE OF HIS CULTURE TO XTANT, A HERITAGE TEXTILE FESTIVAL HELD IN MALLORCA THIS SUMMER.
Art is made by a single individual for the enjoyment of another.
RITU KUMAR HOME'S LATEST TABLEWARE COLLECTION DRAWS FROM IKAT AND CHINTZ.
Ritu Kumar's home collections have always reflected her love for handlooms and Indian art forms. Be it intricate Mughal art or elaborate Kashmiri booti, the table linen, serveware and even glassware borrow from traditional motifs.
SIX DECADES SINCE ITS ORIGIN, BAREFOOT IN COLOMBO REMAINS DEDICATED TO LATE FOUNDER BARBARA SANSONI'S LOVE OF HANDLOOM.
Amid a kaleidoscope of colours in the upholstery section of Barefoot's store in Colombo, the rolls of material stand out for their vibrant variations of green.