ABOUT
Collective for Architecture Lebanon (CAL) is a non-profit organisation established in 2019 in Beirut. It is registered at the Lebanese Ministry of Interior under the number 8629/201.
Collective for Architecture Lebanon (CAL) aims to create a cross-disciplinary platform for discussion and debate between the fields of architecture, design, urban planning, and the humanities. As a platform, CAL will reach out and engage with various actors that hold crucial roles in the development and dissemination of comprehensive research, innovative visions, and critical discourse. Working with the upcoming generation of professionals, CAL aims to empower them to pursue their research by disseminating it through multiple platforms such as lectures, publications, conferences, exhibitions, and competitions. These, in turn, will enable various stakeholders across fields to come together, to debate and connect, sharing stories, solutions, and visions. The broader mission of the collective is to promote this discourse beyond the Arab world, engaging diverse audiences. CAL believes that research on history, geography, planning, and architecture should be widely available and shared to enable the advancement of knowledge and understanding of the Arab world.
Objectives
1. Raise awareness and fuel debate around the importance and impact of territorial planning in the Arab World.
2. Bridge between academia, practice, local authorities and the general public through a multi-faceted design and planning platform.
3. Challenge and rethink the dominant Neo-liberal production of architecture.
4. Provide a platform through which strategies and proposals can be developed and implemented to impact the current status quo.
TEAM
Shereen Doummar, Co-Founder and Director
Shereen Doummar is a practicing architect currently based in London. She is the director of ATMA heading several projects in the Ivory Coast, the UK and Lebanon. She's a graduate of the Architectural Association School of Architecture in London and the laureate of the Renzo Piano Building Workshop bursary. She previously worked with the UK based firms Studio Jenny Jones, REAL Foundation, Zaha Hadid Architects, and REX in New York. She has been exhibited at the Beit Beirut Museum, and has spoken at various conferences, at Edinburgh University, AA School, ALBA, and at the American University of Beirut.
Elias Tamer, Co-Founder
Elias is an Architect currently based between London and Beirut. He has received Diploma Commendation the Honours Nomination from the Architectural Association School of Architecture in London. He previously worked at Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) in New York, Michaelis Boyd and Heatherwick Studio in London as well as on several projects in Beirut. His work has been exhibited at Omran’19 and published in Real Review. He is now working at ATMA.
Edouard Souhaid, Co-Founder
Edouard Souhaid is a Lebanese artist and architect based in Paris since 2015. He holds a degree from the École Spéciale d’Architecture (ESA) and a Master 2 from the École Nationale Supérieure d’Architecture de la Villette (ENSA-LV), with a focus on advanced research in the social sciences, further enriching his multidisciplinary practice.
Edouard’s abstract artwork has been exhibited in prominent venues, including the Beit Beirut Museum, as well as exhibitions in Ho Chi Minh City and Paris. He has also shared his research and expertise at conferences held at the American University of Beirut, the Musée cantonal de design et d’art appliqués contemporain (MUDAC) in Lausanne, and the European Union Parliament in Brussels.
Lynn Chamoun, Co-Founder
Lynn is a product and jewelry designer, Founder of Lynn Chamoun Design, her interior design studio as well Lynsh Fine Jewlery. Her collections are currently sold in Beirut, London, New York and Dubai. She's a graduate of Florence Design Academy as an industrial designer and worked in various design fields before starting Lynsh.