LONDON.- Bonhams is to hold the first-ever sale of Lebanese modern art by an international auction house. It takes place in London on Wednesday 27 April. The sale is being supported by the British Lebanese Association (BLA), the foremost charity promoting Lebanese culture abroad.

Chairman of the BLA, former diplomat Sir David Richmond, said, “This event, which would not have been possible without our partner Bonhams, marks a quantum leap in the recognition of the importance of Lebanese artists on the international contemporary art scene.”

The sale comprises works that give a comprehensive account of Lebanon’s artistic heritage - from turn-of-the-century works by pioneering artists such as Daoud Corm, Khalil Saleeby and Kahlil Gibran to groundbreaking works by modern masters such as Saloua Choucair and Etel Adnan.

Bonhams’ Modern and Contemporary Middle Eastern Art specialist, Nima Sagharchi, said “Lebanon is experiencing a period of significant cultural revival despite the difficult circumstances it has faced. Our auction brings together some of the most important works from Lebanon’s illustrious art movements and provides a new perspective on the contemporary cultural history of the country.”

Ayman Baalbaki
One of the leading works in the sale is The Beirut City Centre Egg by Ayman Baalbaki (born 1975) estimated at £60,000-100,000. At 41, Baalbaki has achieved the highest price at auction for a contemporary Lebanese artist. The ‘Egg’ – as it is fondly referred to by the people of Beirut – is a partially destroyed cinema complex built in the Brutalist style. The shelled-out building has become a monument of the civil war and a historic landmark in its own right. Baalbaki’s subjects are often war-torn buildings, and his painting of the instantly recognisable Egg is one of his largest and most iconic pieces.

Farid Aouad
Opera Garnier by Farid Aouad (1924 -82) estimated at £40,000-60,000, is one of the largest and most prominent works by a Lebanese artist, unappreciated in his lifetime, Aouad spent his later life living in Paris, experimenting with the techniques of the various schools that emerged there during the sixties and seventies. Aouad’s work has been shown in museums across Lebanon and Europe. Opera Garnier was exhibited at one of the most important retrospectives of Lebanese Art to date, Art From Lebanon, at the Beirut Exhibition Centre in 2012.

Shafic Abboud
Shafic Abboud (1926-2004) is considered to be the father of Lebanese modernism and Lebanon’s foremost abstract artist, in high demand within the art market. He also emigrated to Paris after the Second World War, and worked in the studios of artists such as Jean Metzinger and Fernand Léger, among others. He moved away from the traditions of Lebanese figurative and landscape painting early on in his career, and Cela fait quarante jours (Portrait of Christine Abboud), estimated at £35,000-50,000, is a rare semi-figurative work.

Khalil Gibran
Portrait of Mrs Alexander Morten by Khalil Gibran (1883-1931) is a highly significant work by this towering figure in 20th century art and literature. Unseen for 100 years, it is the first Gibran painting ever to be offered at auction. After featuring in Gibran's first exhibition in New York in 1914, the work disappeared from view for a century. Estimated at £20,000-30,000, it is considered one of the lost masterpieces that propelled the poet-artist to international fame. Gibran was well-known for his prolific output of portraiture, and his wider oeuvre includes portraits of his friends W.B. Yeats, Auguste Rodin and Carl Jung.

In addition to the main auction, a segment of the works in the sale will be auctioned with 50% of the proceeds to benefit the British Lebanese Associations Scholarship Fund, which provides scholarships for graduates in Lebanon wishing to pursue a Master’s degree in the UK.