{"id":262854,"date":"2024-11-26T17:16:10","date_gmt":"2024-11-26T15:16:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.monaco-tribune.com\/2024\/11\/the-boustany-family-powerful-yet-discreet-a-symbol-of-relations-between-monaco-and-lebanon\/"},"modified":"2024-11-26T17:16:21","modified_gmt":"2024-11-26T15:16:21","slug":"the-boustany-family-powerful-yet-discreet-a-symbol-of-relations-between-monaco-and-lebanon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.monaco-tribune.com\/en\/2024\/11\/the-boustany-family-powerful-yet-discreet-a-symbol-of-relations-between-monaco-and-lebanon\/","title":{"rendered":"The Boustany family: powerful yet discreet, a symbol of relations between Monaco and Lebanon"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

From patriarch Nabil Boustany, the man behind the rebirth of the H\u00f4tel M\u00e9tropole Monte-Carlo, to collector son Majid, a great admirer of the work of Francis Bacon, and his brother Fadi, who is perpetuating his father’s hotel legacy, the Boustany family is as discreet as it is deeply attached to the Principality and the Princely Family.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Francis Bacon believed <\/a>\u00a0\u201cthe most important thing is to look at the painting\u2014to read the poetry, to listen to the music\u2014not in order to understand it, or to know it but feel something.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n

On 28 October, the anniversary of the birth of the British painter and lover of Monaco, the Francis Bacon MB Art Foundation celebrated its tenth birthday – an opportunity, through a number of events<\/a> organised for the occasion, to ‘feel’ once again the sheer power of the work of one of the 20th century’s greatest artists.<\/p>\n\n

Founded in 2014 by Majid Boustany, the Foundation devoted to Francis Bacon quickly became a genuine institution in the Principality. Rivalled only by an incredible overnight stay at the H\u00f4tel M\u00e9tropole Monte-Carlo. An iconic establishment, the M\u00e9tropole has undertaken\u00a0a new round of major refurbishment work <\/a>this year, just after being awarded two ‘keys’ by the famous Michelin Guide – an accolade which comes on top of the two ‘stars’ already held by the hotel’s restaurant, Les Ambassadeurs by Christophe Cussac<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n

Another success for the Boustany family, as the palace is owned by Majid and his brother Fadi. The family is as discreet as it is powerful in Monaco, its patriarch, Nabil Boustany, having taken up residence in the Principality in the 1970s.<\/p>\n\n

Nabil Boustany, founder of the dynasty<\/h2>\n\n

Born in Lebanon in 1924, Nabil Boustany came from a long line of Lebanese statesmen, clergymen and scholars – the Boustany family counted Boutrous al-Boustany, a hero of the Arab renaissance, among its ancestors. After starting out in Lebanese politics, the property developer set his sights on Geneva and then Monte Carlo: \u00a0“the H\u00f4tel M\u00e9tropole was for sale (…). The deal was done quickly,” <\/em>\u00a0he said<\/a> towards the end of his life.<\/p>\n\n

After the purchase, the entrepreneur embarked upon several years of rebuilding work, at the end of which the M\u00e9tropole was inaugurated with great pomp and ceremony, in the presence of Prince Rainier III. The hotel quickly established itself as a palace with an international reputation, attracting the elite from all over the world.<\/p>\n\n

Close to the Princely Family and a dear friend of Rainier III – who visited him every year at his Lebanese estate in Debbiyeh – Nabil Boustany was elected as a member of parliament in Lebanon in 1992, after which he spent most of the rest of his life in his native country – delegating the operational management of his Monegasque concerns to his two sons, Fadi and Majid, the following year. <\/p>\n

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Fadi Boustany (left), his father, Nabil, and his brother, Majid, in the 1990s – via Hotels Magazine<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

In Beirut, where he then lived, the entrepreneur worked hard to rebuild the Lebanese capital, and involved himself in humanitarian efforts. The Nabil Boustany Foundation, co-founded in 2006 with his son Fadi, is helping to save and renovate several hundred churches in Lebanon.<\/p>\n\n

When he passed away in 2009, Nabil Boustany left his children a multi-billion-dollar business and tourism empire: the H\u00f4tel M\u00e9tropole Monte-Carlo, of course, whose Belle-\u00c9poque style and exclusive suites designed by interior architect Jacques Garcia make it one of the jewels in the crown of Monaco’s hotel industry.<\/p>\n\n

Not forgetting the Givenchy spa, the Karl Lagerfeld-designed pool area and Yoshi restaurant, the only Michelin-starred Japanese restaurant on the C\u00f4te d’Azur, as well as the Metropole Shopping centre and its 80 fashion, luxury, high-tech and jewellery boutiques. These are all major, iconic landmarks in Monaco, contributing to the Principality’s reputation beyond its borders.<\/p>\n\n

Not forgetting the Givenchy spa, the Karl Lagerfeld-designed pool area and Yoshi restaurant, the only Michelin-starred Japanese restaurant on the C\u00f4te d’Azur, as well as the Metropole Shopping centre and its 80 fashion, luxury, high-tech and jewellery boutiques. These are all major, iconic landmarks in Monaco, contributing to the Principality’s reputation beyond its borders.<\/h2>\n\n

While the Boustany properties shine in Monaco and beyond, the family also excels – at being discreet. \u00a0“It\u2019s a very discreet family, extremely smart, wise, with a clear vision of what they want to achieve,” <\/em>Serge Ethuin, general manager of the M\u00e9tropole, told Hotels Magazine<\/em><\/a> .<\/p>\n\n

“Everything is so intentional,”<\/em> says luxury consultant David Richey in the same issue, who believes that \u00a0“The hotel as it exists today is entirely Fadi.” <\/em>\u00a0Born in 1967 in the village of Dibbiyeh,\u00a0 Monegasque resident Fadi Boustany has both Swiss and Lebanese nationality. In the early 1990s, Fadi began his career at the prestigious University of Cambridge, where he was one of the first students to join the British campus’ MBA course.<\/p>\n\n

A memorable time in those hallowed halls for the businessman who, In 2018, financed the construction of a new building at the Cambridge Business School – which, in return, named a lecture theatre after its benefactor. <\/p>\n

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Fadi Boustany – via Hotels Magazine<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u00a0“Fadi was a brilliant part of our team when we were all at Cambridge together,” <\/em>recalls<\/a> one of his classmates, “and has remained an inspiring and generous friend ever since. His wonderful donation is a great example to us all.” <\/em>\u00a0No quest for glory for Fadi Boustany, however, as he is determined to continue his father’s work, cultivating the same insistence on discretion and the same concern for people.<\/p>\n\n

Described by Jean-Claude Messant, of the Royal Mansour Marrakech, as\u00a0“warm and friendly, lacking egotism, but a tough manager,” <\/em>\u00a0Fadi prefers, by his own admission, “To put [his] money into doing something amazing and then letting people publicize it. It takes more time, but when it works, it works,” <\/em>\u00a0he said in a – very – rare 2018 interview with Hotels Magazine<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n

Happiness in discretion…<\/p>\n\n

Majid Boustany, a legacy of art<\/h2>\n\n

Fadi’s brother Majid also seems to share this credo. Born in 1966 in the family village of Dibbiyeh and co-owner, with his brother, of the H\u00f4tel M\u00e9tropole Monte-Carlo, Majid Boustany has chosen to devote his life to art. And more specifically to the art of Francis Bacon. <\/p>\n\n

His passion for the artist’s work was sparked during a visit to London’s famous Tate Gallery: \u00a0“When Bacon burst into my life, I was quickly fascinated by this unique, unclassifiable, self-taught and uncompromising giant whose works raise burning questions,”<\/em> the tireless collector told<\/a> Monaco Tribune<\/em> in April 2022.<\/p>\n

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Majid Boustany \u2013 \u00a9 Francis Bacon MB Art Foundation<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

In 2014, Majid Boustany therefore naturally decided to devote most of his energy to promoting the work of the British artist. And to inaugurate, at the Villa Elise in Monaco and in the presence of Prince Albert II, the only foundation devoted entirely to the work of Francis Bacon.<\/p>\n\n

“The project of a lifetime<\/a>” <\/em>for Majid Boustany, for whom “the idea of creating, in Monaco, the only foundation in the world dedicated to the work of Francis Bacon seemed an obvious one, since the artist lived here at the end of the 1940s and kept returning for long periods throughout his life.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n

“This private, not-for-profit institution will be a new cultural entity on the Monegasque scene,”<\/em> said the collector in 2014. And he was proved right indeed. With a collection of over 3,500 works, the Francis Bacon MB Art Foundation has established itself as a key venue for the research, study and promotion of the painter’s work over its 10-year lifetime.<\/p>\n\n

\u00a0“Expanding the influence of his work is and will remain among my highest priorities,” <\/em>says<\/a> Majid Boustany, adding\u00a0“I cherish the hope that the research to come and the support provided for future projects related to Bacon will reveal yet unknown aspects of this unparalleled artist.” <\/em><\/p>\n

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Dominic Moross, private benefactor; Francisco Diaz, Managing Director of the Cuomo Foundation; Olivier Wenden, Vice-President and CEO of the Prince Albert II Foundation and Majid Boustany for the Boustany Foundation, made their support for the Re.Generation programme official, signing a partnership agreement on Monday 15 May 2023 – \u00a9 FPA2<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

In addition to his passion for Bacon, the elder Boustany brother is also an outstanding patron of the arts. In 2020, Majid Boustany donated over two million euros to the Ecole du Louvre. Franck Riester, the former French Minister of Culture, hailed<\/a> the gesture as “the largest ever for a higher education establishment for which the Ministry of Culture is responsible.” <\/em><\/p>\n\nEmbed from Getty Images<\/a>