





Is it working?














And there’s no trouble with the law?


So what happened with Beirut Municipality back in February?


So Beirut largely tolerates graffiti?


* Published in Emirates Man, June 2015

Top photograph: Yazan Halwani’s ‘Fairuz’ in Gemmayze

71 thoughts on “

  1. “…responsibility towards public places..”is a concept that makes Halwany stand out. Graffiti in most cities/countries have an aggressive edge that isn’t balanced out by a sense of the surrounding aesthetics. Colours generally clash. The second picture in this post is art.

  2. What better way is there to spend one’s own money then using it to put one’s artistic endeavors in a public space where everyone can see it? (I would totally spend my own money on that!)

  3. This is such a relevant piece! What a fantastic use for art..to build the culture of the local community without fear of reprisal from the government. Your piece was so exciting and hopeful. That an artist can use a combination of tagging and Arabic calligraphy to create something culturally meaningful to the local people without having his ego getting in the way. This is what good art is for. Thank you very much for writing this. It is amazing…

  4. Reblogged this on The Worlds Inside Our Minds and commented:
    This a very relevant and hopeful piece about a tagger in Beirut who is doing a whole lot more than spraying paint on walls – he is giving back a cultural focus to his community by replacing political posters with portraits of real local people combined with three different types of Arabic calligraphy to create a beautiful melange of what it means to be human in Beirut.

    This is what good art is supposed to do! He even has a pass from the local government, who will leave his existing pieces alone, and allow him to create more without fear of reprisal. Read the story below, for something exciting and hopeful.

  5. Don’t underestimate the power of Hip-Hop culture. Graffiti is one of the elements of the culture. Keep it right, keep it real. Peace, love and unity.

  6. I just love street art! I think it shocks you out of your day to day mindset like almost nothing else can

  7. True.Despots and dictators do this. So to an unjust political stystem, grafitti is a bit of an artistic revolt of sorts. Maybe not and end to freedom but a means where it is sped up.

  8. I didn’t read the whole story…..I was screaming in the inside with where have you all been…. then I see not America. Graffiti in the U.S.A has been around for years. I’m 34 years old and I remember it was a former of punishment to young adults to go around and remove graffiti from our neighborhoods. Graffiti to me cause I can only go back to when I was a kid. In the early 1990’s late 80’s. But street gangs would use it to display the rights to their territories. Then once police brutality became public it was a way to express pain for losing a member of the gang. If you go to Okland California it all over. Small neighborhood liquor stores, and other small local business owners from other countries like such in this article would allow the kids from gangs to use graffiti on their buildings as a peace treaty so they wouldn’t get robbed or beaten! I’m glad to see its more commonly used now! It’s a true Pacaso! !!!!! Thanks for sharing. ………follow my blog as I will do the same for you!!!!!

    1. I have a friend who is an artist and she was hired to work with Inner city youth. They had a great time; the only that seemed odd is that the work they did that they were all happy with was located at a place of the interstate, which is all good, but, the first thing I thought was that like the artist said. It may not change anything, but it would make a difference to some; if they could have an In house artist in all public inner city schools of all ages to have a building in their neighborhood to paint. Yes, the gang members would destroy it, yet one or two may cross over, but it would done with idea that each time, it was destroyed it would be repainted.
      but would have to a commitment from the city, to keep the police out of it.
      It would keep the violent youth busy.

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