“Farata” project...a designer who transforms lost Lebanese currencies into modern pieces of furniture

In an attempt to restore an aspect of daily life in Lebanon before the economic crisis in 2019, Lebanese designer Jana Sawaya chose to give coins that had lost their monetary value a new role, by transforming them into pieces of furniture that combine practical function and design. From this idea, the “Fratata” collection from “Majnouna Studio” was launched and included four designs that repurposed 250 and 500 Lebanese Lira coins to create a lamp, a stool, and two side tables.

Memories of the Lebanese “Man’ousheh” The beginning of the “Fratah” group goes back to Sawaya’s attempt to retrieve the prices of some daily goods before the economic crisis. She said that she began, spontaneously, by trying to remember the cost of foods and drinks that she used to buy, such as the thyme manoushe, which cost a thousand Lebanese pounds, the cheese manoushe, which was sold for 1,500 pounds, and the small bottle of water, which did not cost more than 500 pounds. These memories led her to wonder what happened to the banknotes and coins that people no longer used.

During her research, she discovered that the decline in the value of the Lebanese pound prompted people to buy large quantities of coins, to benefit from their metals and sell them according to their metal value instead of their monetary value. From here, she began thinking about how to preserve the memory of that period through material things, and the idea later turned into a collection that bore the colloquial pronunciation of these currencies.

In an interview with the Ofoq News website in Arabic, Sawaya points out that the story behind the group is not a happy one, despite her endeavor to create beautiful pieces, as the economic crisis that began in 2019 turned people’s lives upside down. These currencies are still familiar to her, even though they have completely disappeared from daily use.

Four designs that combine coins, metal and wood. Each piece in the collection bears a name that reflects the total value of the coins used in its manufacture, while the number of coins varies according to the size and design of the piece. The four designs adopt a pattern resembling fish scales in the arrangement of the currencies, so that from a distance they may appear as decorative metal circles, before discovering upon approaching them that they are Lebanese currencies in denominations of 250 and 500 liras.

It consists of: Technical details behind the installation of the coins. Sawaya relies on the contrast between the golden copper color of the 250 Lira coins and the silver color of the 500 Lira coins, to create different patterns in the four designs. The coins are attached to the basic structures of the furniture, whether on the leg of the table, the body of the lamp that holds the shade and the light bulb, or the base of the chair that bears the weight of the person sitting on it.

This method allows the coins to play a decorative role, while the basic structure of each piece maintains its practical function. The designer explains that she tried different methods for stabilizing the currencies before settling on a system that relies on linking them together.

Each coin is polished and perforated before being attached to the structure using a metal wire, and the wire is then welded to ensure it stays in place. Finding the coins threatens the continuity of the group. Securing the required quantities of coins was one of the most prominent challenges that Sawaya faced.

She explains that she found someone who collected a large amount of it and sold it to her by the kilogram, which allowed her to work on a larger scale. It is still possible to find large quantities of 500 lira coins, but obtaining 250 lira coins has become more difficult.

This is explained by the fact that the copper in the last category coins exceeds the nickel in the 500 Lira coins in terms of metallic value, which made copper coins more in demand at the beginning of the crisis in 2019, for the purpose of smelting them and selling their metals. Accordingly, Sawaya describes Farata as a collection that is temporary in nature, as it may have to stop producing its pieces when it is no longer able to find the necessary coins.

Sawaya believes that designed pieces should carry a meaning that goes beyond their direct function, as some people choose furniture for the comfort or practical benefit it provides, while others are attracted to the pieces for aesthetic purposes, but she seeks to combine the two sides, by creating artistic pieces that carry emotional and aesthetic dimensions, and at the same time perform a practical function.