April 2, 2019

Beirut walls

Beirut, Lebanon
GPS 33°53'47.9"N 35°28'44.5"E

Some time before the terrifying explosion, the gorgeous Melissa Peritore shot magnificent images of some 'Talking Walls' in Beirut that lead to some of our most successful designs. She told us about the vibrant atmosphere that reigns in this city and the positivity of the people in Beirut, despite the history of political violence and economic struggle in this city. And in the aftermath of the explosion, some of these walls in Beirut may have fallen, but the soul and the stories of its passionate, creative and zealous citizens will keep talking.

So street art is often a flashback to the history of the Beiruti and carries kind of a heavy weight. This art, often of high quality, shows it is done by people that care about the history of their country, and in a way it seems that this way they try to keep the memories of the past alive.

THE STORY OF THE BLUE WALL FISHES OF BEIRUT

In Makdessi street, one of the top destination for night life, you find lots of graffiti from various artists. The blue fish swims among the others graphics. "Nobody knows why the artist painted these fish, but they are everywhere and everybody likes them…"

Making funny fish faces

Every single one of us has done it, and every single one of us is still very amused when someone does it. Yes indeed, the funny fish face. Suck your cheeks in, make your eyes pop, move your lips, there it is! Now you better start practicing peeps, because the duck face got too mainstream and so the fish face is totally making a comeback.

Swimming against the current

Yazan Halwani is a street artist born in Beirut a few years after the civil war officially ended. But he could still feel the impact of the war and the fractures of the fact that the city had been divided in two parts and into different neighborhoods. The first logos that were found on the walls in Beirut, were drawn by militias, as a form of propaganda. As he felt there was no space for culture, he decided to do something different. He wanted to create art that was meaningful to the city and so he was the first to swim against the stream. Meanwhile, other artists followed his path. Some even say that their graffiti brings Beirut alive.
Find out more about this great artist here > Yazan Halwani

The Talking Walls of Beirut

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