Architecture in Liberty

In this talk, Youssef Tohme will focus on how architecture is based on the presence of Man, and how in return it helps Man to become conscious of his own liberty.

This talk is part of the ongoing series Débat d’idées organized by the French Embassy in Lebanon and the French Institute in Lebanon. The series promotes dialogue and exchange with an aim to support the common values shared by Lebanon and France, among which the right to culture and education.

Youssef Tohme is an architect based in Lebanon.  He graduated from the Architecture School of Paris-Villemin, and has worked in various architecture agencies in Paris, including l’Atelier Jean Nouvel. During those years, he conducted many projects in Lebanon, including the Campus of Innovation and Sports at Saint Joseph University (USJ). In 2008, he founded his own agency in Beirut, Youssef Tohme Architects and Associates (YTAA). Among his many projects, he participated to the planning of the Brazza district in Bordeaux and the construction of MARe (Muzeul de Artă Recentă/ Museum of Recent Art) in Bucharest. His Beirut-based agency has been selected to conceive the famous eleven-story wood tower in Nantes. Tohme has been awarded the Young Arab Architects Competition award (CA'ASI, Institute of the Arab World, Paris, 2012).