Cultural creation

August 29, 2024

Artist and illustrator:


Co-producer and poet:


Co-producer:


Co-curators:

  • Dahlia Bouri
  • Carol Hobeika


Music:


This cultural creation is also available in:

Keywords: Beirut Explosion; re-imagined Beirut; Lebanon; women; recovery; reconstruction; healing; culture; justice; accountability; philanthropy

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What is Beirut when women blossom?
In this ode of color and justice, the co-creators, Lynn Zovighian and Noémie Honein, and the Zovighian Public Office (ZPO), would like to thank all journalists, scholars, public policy leaders, human rights defenders, doctors, musicians, and citizens for never letting Lebanon go through these difficult times. We are all still here because you all still are.

A colourful lithograph of Beirut by Noémie Honein depicting the Beirut coastline in bright blue and turquoise tones.

Beirut, our Beirut,
would be so colorful,
so centered on human rights
and a dignified life
for all its people and generations.

A colourful lithograph of Beirut; a blue building with open windows revealing interior scenes, with leafy green plants.

A house of many mansions,
where we discover
that in collective action,
we can wield our power
and compose
our present and future
acts and stanzas.

A colourful lithograph of Beirut; A rooftop party on a blue building, with people dancing and socializing under warm lights.

A house of many mansions,
where we discover
that in collective action,
we can wield our power
and compose
our present and future
acts and stanzas.

A colourful lithograph of Beirut; A rooftop party on a blue building, with people dancing and socializing under warm lights.

A poem of many concerts
where our melodies
of times before
and times ahead
dance on rooftops.

Red-toned illustration of a choir performing on stage in Beirut with a conductor raising a hand, and cellist on the right.

And we sing
at the top of our lungs,
because every day
can be beautiful
when you have been cruelly taught
to never take
any of our precious lives
for granted.

A colourful lithograph of Beirut; Rooftop garden scene with lush plants, lounge chairs, and buildings in colorful pastel hues

Joy, now we know,
is the greatest act of resistance
against those who aimed to destroy us
but failed.

A colourful lithograph of Beirut; Painting of the sun glowing over a calm blue sea with warm yellow and gold reflections.

A country with a vision
will always be work in progress
because you can never stop
painting and drawing,
coloring and imagining.

A colourful lithograph of Beirut; buildings with wide balconies and a rooftop garden on a sunny day.

Man-made disasters and crimes
can no longer be

the pieces of our puzzle.

A colourful lithograph of Beirut; park scene with people on swings and greenery, nestled between tall colorful buildings.

Set our city free,
and see how nature replaces
catastrophes
with abundance
and a love for regeneration
because resilience
is no longer our code for living.

A lithograph of Beirut; Blue water background. A green field has stick figures holding hands, a building, &

A Beirut Explosion memorial
that we all still deserve
because ammonium nitrate,
criminality, complicity, and
falsified freedom far from
accountability
will never be forgotten,
for even pencil on paper
cannot be erased.

A colourful lithograph of Beirut; Street scene with pedestrians at a crosswalk cars, & buildings, illuminated by streetlights

In a land that
chooses
to finally vote for
law and order.

A colourful lithograph of Beirut; Triptych: Figures interact with food and drink. Light tones with red outlines and details.

With pockets of heritage and tradition
that keep on living
through our many crises,
rejecting erasure
and irrelevance.

A colorful lithograph of Beirut; Illustration of a building facade with colorful arched windows & decorative balcony patterns

Together,
let us pour love into color,
magic on paper,
and energy in form.

A colourful lithograph of Beirut; A Beirut storefront with green signage and pink-toned details.

Let us always hold space
for hope and happiness for our Beirut,
because all Lebanese
and people of this city
deserve to heal
on our own terms
with our loved ones and family
by our side
and with a joie de vivre
renewed. 

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About the Zovighian Public Office

The Zovighian Public Office (ZPO) was established in 2015 to serve communities facing crises and crimes of atrocity. We are dedicated to amplifying their voices through research, advocacy, and diplomacy. We are deeply committed to the empowerment of Lebanese communities, grassroots institutions, and cultural and civil society leaders.


www.zovighian.org