Sobya't Thawra - The revolution woodstove

October 17, 2019. Lebanon witnessed the emergence of an unprecedented civil movement as people took to the streets of Beirut demanding sweeping political and economic change. Building up exponentially to resist the pushback of corrupt political parties, The October Revolution was confronted with the heavy rains of a cold and harsh winter. The 'Sobya't Thawra', a transliteration from Arabic to mean 'the Revolution Stove', was conceived as a simple contribution to the resistance, intended to cover the most practical of needs; in addition to heating, it has a stove for cooking and two kettle niches for brewing coffee or tea. Protesters would sleep around the stove, gather nearby to hold political discussions and disassemble its smaller parts to protect it from theft during the early hours of the morning when Martyr Square would be almost deserted. 'Sobya't Thawra' is made of laser-cut black steel parts that are assembled on-site. Its set-up time is approximately one hour, making use of a centuries' old technique known as wedge joinery, making it fairly simple to reproduce anywhere. 

Hosted by Urban Koop, The Revolution Woodstove has been also installed on Karakoy Pier in Istanbul as part of the 'New Civic Rituals' program of Istanbul Design Biennial (IKSV 2020), under the theme Empathy Revisited: Designs for more than one.