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Founder and principles

Having studied and worked in the US and UK before moving to Beirut, Ahmad has experience as an architect, furniture designer, installation artist, and fabricator. He has worked at a number of architecture firms on projects ranging in scale from low and high-rise residential, commercial, interior detailing, as well as furniture design. He is a graduate of Columbia and Berkeley Universities, and was employed by the faculty of architecture at LAU and AUB where he teaches design studios and seminars with a focus on parametric design.

The Neighborhood

In 2019 DAMJ moved from its original location in Gemmayzeh to Mar Mkhayel only a few minutes away. Mar Mkhayel may have gone through many changes over the past 10 years, but it is historically known for its community of craftsmen and still retains many of them. It is a strategic place for us to be located, as much of our work is done through a careful collaboration with various artisans in the surrounding area; from traditional carving, sadaf inlay, copper-smiths, machinists and more.

The Workshop

Established in 2013, DAMJ began its journey in a historic stone-vaulted artisan khan-turned carpentry shop in the Gemmayzeh district of Beirut. In 2019, we were lucky to find a new home for our design office, workshop and gallery in Mar Mkhayel, an area historically known for its artisans of many trades. Despite the difficulties faced by the country as a whole, DAMJ has sought to serve as a hub for crafts of all sorts. Not only do we collaborate and share work with our large network of crafts-people across the country, but since 2021 we have used our gallery space to feature works from a wide range of artisans. It is this ethos, foregrounding the skilled local craftsmanship of the area, as well as our thorough integration of design and new fabrication techniques, that DAMJ brings to its clients.