Cafe Society
A Beirut-based branding consultancy designed a pop-up coffee shop for a major international art show.
Rana Salam Studio was commissioned by Turkish café Old Java to create the colourful space at the 3rd Instanbul Design Biennial. The firm’s founder and art director, Rana Salam, said: “We wanted the visitors to experience another world through the Istanbul Biennial’s pop-up coffee shop in which the city of Beirut is translated into a design experience through its architectural buildings, landscape and people.
She added: “Big hair, big cars, big dreams. Beirut is a city with contrast and contradiction that when mixed together create a fantastic piece of design.”
Salam studied in London at Central St Martins School of Art and Design and at the Royal College of Art. The daughter of pioneering architect Assem Salam, her vibrant signature style is inspired by Middle Eastern popular culture.
The 3rd Instanbul Design Biennial ran from 20 October to 20 November. Organised by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts, it was curated by Beatriz Colomina and Mark Wigley.