Should I get a Samsung or an Iphone? Do I live in the right neighborhood or should a move to a better one? What shall I eat tonight as I don’t want to cook? All these are luxury problems that for many around the world are an every day routine. But what if you are just happy tob e alive and you ask yourself where can I sleep tonight, or what can I eat at all? These could be the questions of a war torn district and possibly those of people who’s past has been void of peace and harmony. Kevin Ledo is an artist that has recently completed a project in Beirut which is exactly one of those regions where in the past there wasn’t information exchange or trade, therev was conflict violence and destruction. A place where movement is difficult enough to survive let alone considering where to move to. Samatha Robison from aptART offers some words on the Ledo project to shed some light on the artists challenge and those that helped him create the artwork to confront it. FACING FUTURE KEVIN LEDO LEBANON

“FACING THE FUTURE” – Kevin Ledo for aptArt in Lebanon

It is difficult to move through the streets of Beirut without seeing traces of war. Bullet and mortar holes scar the walls of neighborhoods. They are physical reminder of decades of battles between different groups vying for power along ethnic, religious and political lines.

Remembering the past, but looking to the future, we gathered youth living around a wall that has been the front line between several battles since the 1970s. The future is in the hands of the youth and inspiring them to hope together for a better world is critical for peace. Working with Lebanese youth and newly arrived Syrian refugees, Kevin Ledo painted a portrait of a young girl with bright eyes facing defiantly forward to the future. After a workshop about what each individual youth envisions in their future, they painted their ideas inside the body of the young girl. She is filled with aspirations for a peace, a clean environment and people seeking a better life. The bullet holes are still visible but a child’s face overlays the damage of previous generations as she faces an unknown future brimming with possibility.

All Images by SAMANTHA ROBISON – aptArt