An incredible cabinet of curiosities, the Duke’s Diwan is perhaps the most distinctive exhibition space in Amman. This ancient well preserved building in the heart of Downtown makes visitors feel that each object has found its place naturally, generations coming one after the other regardless of genealogy. So the contrast was striking between this place of “luxury, quiet and pleasure” and the comedic sketches by Lebanese photographer Tufic Yazbek. These advertisements were commissioned for large brands in the 1960s and 1970s. They embody an era when consumerism was still in its infancy.
Mounted on pastel walls like icons, these small, square-format images are jarring for their vintage, filtered look and the apparent artifice of the staging. The sets, studios and slick hairstyles are symbols of the Hollywood glamour that the photographer loved.
