Beirut-born creative Chahan Minassian has long felt at home in Venice. Now, a new chapter in the city begins with the expansion of his gallery and a partnership with Fortuny fabrics.
Chahan Minassian in front of his palazzina in Venice
Chahan Minassian is undoubtedly a fixture in the art and design worlds; an insider with projects across the globe. While most of his work remains unpublished at his clients’ request, those in the know are well aware of his many talents. He leans into the total package, positioning himself as an interior designer, antique dealer, gallerist, and curator. The Minassian aesthetic is refined and sophisticated, marked by a combination of vintage pieces, art, and his own furniture and lighting designs – a style he has now brought to Venice with the latest outpost of his eponymous gallery.
With a prolific career spanning more than three decades, Minassian’s personal and professional footprint has grown steadily. He went from the US to Paris, and eventually to La Serenissima in 2018 where, while looking for a pied-à-terre, he found a palazzo instead. Located on the Grand Canal next to Ca’ Rezzonico palace in the Dorsoduro district, it is here that Minassian set up house and home. Of his relationship to the Italian city, he says, “I was born in Lebanon and I love living on the water. It has always been what I love – Florida and Paris, on the Seine. And Venice is a dreamy city in the water, just a few hours from Paris with such a sophisticated lifestyle. I’ve visited three to four times a year for the past 30 years.”
The designer’s rock crystal coffee table and a custom Giudecca Canal carpet, with an Edward Wormley sofa in Fortuny fabric
With a demanding professional calendar of up to 25 projects at any given time and on a plane sometimes eight times a week, Minassian couldn’t resist the allure of Venice. “I feel grounded in Venice. In the water. In my head. Soothed by the water, no traffic, I walk everywhere,” he muses. As someone who is both Middle Eastern and Mediterranean, he relates to the ancient and storied roots of his surroundings. “It was a busy port, a merchant city, for centuries,” he says. Drawn by Venice’s opulence and international lifestyle, he found it a natural fit for his globe-trotting life.
Reflecting on the years leading up to his move, Minassian says, “I was born in Beirut in the early 60s, and we moved to Paris in 1976. I studied and completed my schooling in interior design there. I worked extensively in the US on both residential and commercial projects, then brought my American furniture and mid-century design sensibility to Paris. It was all complementary.” A true multihyphenate, Minassian’s global portfolio spans luxury residential projects and superyachts, as well as commercial ventures like his significant contributions to the Crillon Hotel, a Rosewood property in Paris. He also has two Chahan Galleries on the rue de Lille, where his custom designs sit alongside vintage finds and thoughtfully selected artworks, reflecting his signature refined and stylized environments.
A Minassian-designed daybed in Fortuny fabrics and Philip and Kelvin LaVerne cocktail table
Well-established in the French capital, Minassian saw the perfect opportunity to expand his professional practice to his magical adoptive city of Venice when fate struck again. Another historic property came his way: the former home of Elsie McNeill Lee, the American interior designer and businesswoman known as Countess Gozzi. Once her residence, the property is part of the Fortuny compound – the word-renowned furnishing fabrics business she once owned. The three-story palazzina, dating back to 1910, spans 500sqm and includes five acres of gardens, a pool, and a rooftop. Minassian was offered this townhouse – untouched for 30 years – as a new gallery outpost. True to his ambitious spirit, he set a goal to complete the extensive renovations within just two months to have it ready for the Venice Art Biennale in April this year.
Mission accomplished: the site is now open to the public yearround, featuring 10 separate spaces, each with a dedicated theme that changes twice a year. True to Minassian’s signature style, the decor blends art, vintage pieces, and his latest creations, all while incorporating Fortuny fabrics in fresh, modern ways. For instance, in one room, he created a patchwork tapestry using 40 different Fortuny fabrics as a striking wall covering. For the palazzina’s next iteration, timed to coincide with the Venice Architecture Biennale in May 2025, Minassian plans to once again redo the interiors with a greater emphasis on sculpture. In the meantime, his hands remain full as always, with two superyacht projects underway and residential endeavors spanning Gstaad, Aspen, Rome, and Milan.
Horacio Cordero chairs alongside a Silas Seandel table and Vladimir Kagan Omnibus sofa in Fortuny fabric
It’s a hectic schedule, but Minassian finds comfort in knowing the calming canals of Venice are always waiting for him. Despite the demands of his many projects, it’s also what inspires him. “I have worked internationally for over 30 years now and remained European and Mediterranean in my lifestyle,” he says. “My style is my lifestyle – how I like to live, travel, and enjoy everything, not just design.” This perspective, he notes, is what makes him a highly sought-after interior designer. “What I bring to my clients is a complete set of lifestyle, curation, and design.” He likens his role to that of a fashion stylist, applying a deliberate and thoughtful approach to crafting interiors. “I bring together everything I love and present it both individually and as a cohesive whole. I enjoy making suggestions,” he adds.
And suggest he does. Anyone who visits one of Minassian’s stands at art and design fairs like PAD Paris gets a glimpse of what the designer is loving at the moment. He brings a characteristic blend of materials, textures, artistic collaborations, and craftsmanship to everything he touches, alongside his keen eye for special finds. His work is both modern and timeless, luxurious yet comfortable – rooted in a deep understanding of history and innovative approaches to traditional techniques. When asked how he prefers to be described, the creative offers a fitting label for his multifaceted, continent-spanning career: “Call me global!”
Simon Gavina Italian armchair with Adrian Pearsall’s brutalist cube
Originally published in the Fall/Winter 2024 issue of Vogue Living Arabia
Read Next: Inside Hacienda Nomad, a 200-Year-Old Ibiza Ranch that Bursts with Color, Quirk, and Rich History
