This year marks the 700th anniversary of Dante Alighieri’s death; an anniversary celebrated internationally, and here is Lebanon’s very own remembrance.

ON THE OTHER SIDE OF TIME, the public art installation by Lebanese architect and artist Nayla Romanos Iliya draws its inspiration from Dante’s famous Divine Comedy, and was specifically created for the square adjacent to St Elias church in Minet El Hosn, Beirut.
 

The installation echoes the poem’s structure and theme, narrating Dante’s travels through Hell, Purgatory and Paradise.
The deep-rooted symbolism of the theme is acutely pertinent in Lebanon, where decades of corruption and negligence coupled with impunity have tested both individual and social consciousness to their limits.
 

In a non-artistic context, the irony surfaces as “hell” has been the word that describes the current situation of the Lebanese people, but the twist here is that this particular hell was imposed on the people rather than them deserving it.
The comedy has turned into a tragedy, and while “Paradise” seems a long way ahead, the art aims at instilling some belief that there exists, still, a ray of hope.

After the long wait, the official on-site unveiling of the installation will take place tomorrow Wednesday, October 20th at 5:30 pm, in partnership with the Istituto Italiano di Cultura di Beirut, in the presence of H.E. Nicoletta Bombardiere, Ambassador of Italy to Lebanon.

The ceremony includes a live music and dance performance exclusively commissioned for the event, presented every 45 minutes until 9:00 pm.
Music performance by NDU string ensemble, artistic director father Khalil Rahmé
Dance performance by Yara Boustany and Nader Bahsoun