Sioufi Garden


The Sioufi Garden is a public garden in the Achrafieh District of Beirut in Lebanon. The garden overlooks Avenue President Émile Lahoud, the Beirut River, and the summits of Mount Lebanon. The area of the garden is 20,000 square meters.

History

The garden took its name from its location in the Sioufi quarter, which is situated on the eastern edge of the Achrafieh hill. The quarter took its name from the Sioufi furniture factories that were built in the area in 1910; as service for the public, the owners of the factories maintained a garden open to the public.

Public Art

In 1997 Ashkal Alwan - The Lebanese Association for Plastic Arts, in partnership with the Lebanese Ministry of Culture, collaborated with ten artists in order to permanently install their works in Sioufi Garden. The permanent installation's goal was to nurture and educate the public on the cultural significance of art and public spaces as well as allowing the future generation access to creative work. This access allowed the public and nature to alter the artworks to best suit their needs such as Charles Khoury's The Guard has had his wings lowered for children to climb on. This is one of the many possibilities of interaction with the artwork for future and past generations with a list below :