In 1996 Mark Hachem opened his first contemporary art gallery in the heart of Paris, in the Marais. The opening of a second gallery followed, eleven years later, when Hachem inaugurated his Madison Avenue location in New York. Since the successful opening of the Beirut gallery in 2010, Mark Hachem’s engagement with the artistic currents of the Middle Eastern and Asian market has increased and flourished.

Over the past two decades, the gallery has exposed prestigious artists, initially distinguishing itself from other Parisian galleries for its interest in Kinetic art. Mark Hachem exhibits prestigious artists of the Op Art movement. The gallery takes part in prestigious contemporary art fairs around the world. With more than 200 exhibitions to his credit, Mark Hachem Gallery has acquired a robust international reputation for its dynamism and professionalism. An ardent defender of contemporary art, Mark Hachem is also an adviser to public institutions and private collectors.

Nasreddine Bennacer
Nazar Yahya
Sofia Hihat
Philippe Hiquily
Marino Di Teana
Jesus Rafael Soto
Carlos Cruz Diez
Helen Khal
Alfred Basbous
Hamed Abdalla
Bassam Kyrillos
Chaouki Chamoun
Charbel Samuel Aoun
Ghazi Baker
Hussein Madi
Laila Shawa
Leila Nseir
Ricardo Mbarkho
Saddam Jumaily
Yves Hayat
Wolfgang Stiller

Alfred Basbous was born in Rachana in 1924. His first exhibition in Beirut, at the Alecco Saab gallery in 1958, marked the beginning of his success and introduced him into the world of sculpture.In 1960, he received a scholarship from the French government and became a pupil of the sculptor René Collamarini at “The National Fine Arts School in Paris” (L’Ecole Nationale des Beaux-Arts in Paris). In 1961, his works were included in the International Sculpture Exhibition at the Musée Rodin, in Paris.

From 1994 to 2004, Basbous organized the International Symposium of Sculpture in Rachana, where famous sculptors from around the world were invited to create, sculpt and exhibit their works alongside his own.

Throughout his life, Basbous won many awards including the “Prix de l’Orient” in Beirut in 1963 and the price of Biennale in Alexandria in 1974. When he died in 2006, the President of the Lebanese Republic, in order to honor him, awarded him the “Medal of the Lebanese Order of Merit in Gold.”

Basbous’s works are particularly touching because they exude deeply ingrained sincerity. Focused on the aesthetic principles of shape, movement, line, material and harmony, his sculptures are marks of genuinity and acceptance of beauty. This clairvoyance and aversion towards frivolous and meaningless embellishments echo his own philosophy of aisance and simplicity.


The works of Alfred Basbous are part of the permanent family exhibition in Rachana, Lebanon. His monumental works are present in the public areas of Beirut and many Lebanese cities, acquired through municipalities and private projects.