Meker just pulled of the unlikeliest of events for its 50th anniversary - one where nothing seemed to happen and one where so much effort was done so as for nothing seemed to happen. Confused? Good, because Pimo and Diane Mhanna from Meker figured an event I call a "swan" - where there is so much activity done beneath the surface but which above ground seemed so fluid and easy-going. Of course you may ask, with a large location (their main Jisr el Wati branch), catering provided by Nicolas Audi and Pacfico drinks, how can anyone go wrong? Well, trust me, I have planned events for clients which ended up at one point or another due to silly client intervention, so lame we had - "add fireworks" here or "insert sword swollower" there to rectify the idiocies - whereas the Meker event seemed to flow unobtrusively like a well-oiled machine without adding anything to charming but powerful features.
The Paul Gorra images featuring the people behind the machines, some of whom have been 27 years with Meker, are a beauty to behold, and the golden touches on the tables is such an understated smart wink one needs to notice.
Truth be told, the 50th anniversary of Meker was my kind of events. Low key (even if choreographed to the millisecond), well organized (even if the behind the curtain move must have been excoriating), seemingly simple (even if so complicated to orchestrate so as not to end up simplistic), and all in all-in-all very warm and enticing.
Congratulations and here's to 50 more!