Bilal Khaled's mural is a Palestinian artist's message to the Lebanese
5 Min Read
After completing the largest mural in Lebanon, Palestinian artist Bilal Khaled tells Al Mayadeen Net that he is trying to shed light on the many talents found in Gaza.
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The largest mural in Lebanon on one of the buildings of Hamra Street
After touring a number of Arab and international countries, Palestinian artist Bilal Khaled, 31, landed a few days ago in Beirut.
In the Lebanese capital, which is experiencing deteriorating economic and social conditions, the graffiti artist, who hails from the besieged Gaza, painted hope for the Lebanese people in Arabic letters.
“With you, we build a better tomorrow, with you, we march on and triumph,” is the verse that Khaled transformed, with great effort over the past couple of days, into the largest mural in Lebanon on one of the buildings of Hamra Street, quoting the poet Ghassan Matar.
Khaled visited Lebanon at the invitation of the Lebanese Ministry of Culture, as the Minister of Culture in the caretaker government, Mohammad Wissam Al-Murtada, honored the artist and his colleague Nidal Al-Wahidi.
Al Mayadeen Net interviewed Khaled to know more about his artistic journey and his relationship with the Arabic language. Below is the text of the dialogue.
Why are you in Beirut today? What does it mean to you to create a work of art on its walls?
"I am in Beirut at the kind invitation of the Lebanese Ministry of Culture to carry out the artwork on Hamra Street. This work, which is considered the largest Arab calligraphy work in Lebanon, bears the words of the poet Ghassan Matar, which was sung by artist Julia Boutros.
'With you, we build a better tomorrow, with you, we march on and triumph,' is a message - from me as a Palestinian artist who left the Gaza Strip - to the Lebanese people and all the peoples of the world. The message is: 'You are our hope. With our unity and solidarity, Palestine will be liberated and victorious.'"
To what extent can the Arabic language remain one of your artistic tools? Do you see that your work contributes to the revival of the Arabic language?
"Our Arabic language is a weapon for all of us, and we must adhere to it in this era in which the language has begun to decline gradually due to technological development, and the daily use of other languages ​​in many transactions and communication platforms.
Through my technique of writing these letters, I try to spread the culture of the Arabic language among the peoples of the world and make them aware of its authenticity, as well as to spread it in every country and city, in order to show the beauty of our language and the magic of calligraphy and Arabic letters. Arabic calligraphy brings life to anything placed on it."
How did you succeed in refining your talent?
"My talent started from the streets and alleys of the camp in Gaza and from the writings that cover its walls. I started visiting calligraphers and learning from them, then I worked on handwriting billboards. However, after 2013, I created a new method for writing these letters on the walls, so I combined the art of graffiti and Arabic calligraphy."
It is said that art has many roles, one of which is that it carries a message, an idea, or a situation, regardless of its nature. What messages do your paintings carry?
"Today, I have a lot of murals in many countries around the world between Asia, Africa, and Europe. All these paintings carried a message from an artist who left the besieged Gaza Strip, to be a messenger conveying a creative image of artists and talents who were unable to leave the Strip.
I am trying to shed light on this besieged spot through these works, to show that there are many talents and many creative people in Gaza who have not been discouraged by wars and sieges from continuing the path to achieving their dreams. My message has always been to shed light on these people through these paintings. My other message is to spread the culture of the Arabic language and the art of Arabic calligraphy in all parts of the world."
How do the people of the besieged Gaza Strip interact with your paintings? Did you open a path toward this form of free expression in Gaza?
"At first, it was somewhat complicated because introducing a new artistic style in a besieged society that is not open to the world is difficult. In 2015, I founded the Gaza Graffiti group, which aims to spread this art and speak to the world through it. We have succeeded in producing much artwork, the most important of which is the Besieged Childhood painting, which is the largest painting in Palestine on Al-Zafer Tower that was bombed in the 2014 aggression.
Today, the Gazan society is seeking to acquire, publish and interact with this type of art, and graffiti has become widely resonant with every new work I do."
