Widely known as Lebanon’s “city of statues”, Aley is home to more than 300 works of open-air sculpture, made by artists from around the globe.

While most can be found among the pines of Ras al Jabel, others dot the streets of the city, creating unexpected eye candy for locals and tourists alike.

In 1999, Aley aspired to become a new center of international contemporary sculpture. For three consecutive years, the municipality organized international symposia: a meeting place for sculptors and artists from around the world.

The driving force behind this art-for-the-people enterprise was Aref Al Rayess, the volatile artist of Picasso-esque energy who lived in Aley and was a leading player in the Lebanese art scene.

Wanting to revitalize his town, which had previously been one of the country’s most popular summer resorts, he came up with the idea ­ (similar to the annual sculpture event organised by Basbous brothers at Rashana, near Batroun). ­ Rayess garnered the co-operation of the Municipality of Aley and also the Lebanese Association of Painters and Sculptors to serve as co-sponsors on the project.

Details of planning and organizing the event were handled under the professional eye of Al Rayess, himself a world-class sculptor, though he did not participate in the event.
Assistance to make it all happen, in funding or otherwise, came from various sources, among them the American Underwriters Group, Bank of Beirut and the Arab Countries, the Casino Piscine Aley and, of course, the municipality itself.