Artistic vision on Beirut’s streets

Close to Beirut’s Sodeco Square, a painting of a LL100,000 bill has popped up. It’s not an exact replica of the real note. It features a portrait of the late and renowned Lebanese writer, artist and poet Gibran Khalil Gibran.  This is not the first time 20-year-old graffiti artist Yazan Halwani has painted influential cultural figures on the city’s streets. Stroll down Gemmayze and you will come across a large depiction of Lebanese singer Fairouz. Head to the industrial area of Qarantina and you will spot a portrait of the late journalist and political activist Samir Kassir. An activist at heart When he is not studying for his undergraduate degree in computer and communications engineering (CCE) at the American University of Beirut (AUB), Halwani is making Beirut’s streets prettier. Typically choosing walls crammed with posters of electoral candidates; Halwani brings them down or paints over them. “All our role models