Since 2020, Today I Would Like to Be a Tree has evolved as an ongoing artistic and humanitarian initiative in response to the escalating realities of destruction and violence.
It first emerged as a direct response to the tragic Beirut Port explosion and subsequently expanded in response to the overlapping crises that have shaped Lebanon and the region, including war, displacement, and collective trauma. Since 2020, Today I Would Like to Be a Tree has responded to these realities through art and humanitarian action.
In its 2026 edition, responding to the ongoing Israeli war on Lebanon, Today I Would Like to Be a Tree unfolds in three interconnected phases. It begins as a nationwide mobile artistic and psychosocial intervention engaging displaced and crisis-affected children across Lebanon.
Their collective drawings are then transformed into leporello books, inviting Lebanese, regional, and international artists to intervene and extend the dialogue. The project culminates in a fundraising exhibition, supporting education, psychosocial care, and affected families.
Since 2020, Today I Would Like to Be a Tree has evolved as an ongoing artistic and humanitarian initiative in response to the escalating realities of destruction and violence.
It first emerged as a direct response to the tragic Beirut Port explosion and subsequently expanded in response to the overlapping crises that have shaped Lebanon and the region, including war, displacement, and collective trauma. Since 2020, Today I Would Like to Be a Tree has responded to these realities through art and humanitarian action.
In its 2026 edition, responding to the ongoing Israeli war on Lebanon, Today I Would Like to Be a Tree unfolds in three interconnected phases. It begins as a nationwide mobile artistic and psychosocial intervention engaging displaced and crisis-affected children across Lebanon.
Their collective drawings are then transformed into leporello books, inviting Lebanese, regional, and international artists to intervene and extend the dialogue. The project culminates in a fundraising exhibition, supporting education, psychosocial care, and affected families.
Since 2020, Today I Would Like to Be a Tree has responded to these realities through art and humanitarian action.
In March 2026, the project developed into a psychosocial art intervention engaging displaced children across schools and shelters in Lebanon through participatory drawing.
The project is now entering its final edition: a fundraising exhibition that brings together the children’s collective artistic expressions with the work of participating artists, transforming the intervention into a public platform for visibility, support and continued humanitarian action.
“The tree is an alternative, perhaps even an antidote. It protects, though shaken by ravages. Its roots firmly embrace the earth from which it has sprung, sustained by a reciprocal life force. The tree endures and by enduring, heals..”
Abed Al Kadiri
“The tree is an alternative, perhaps even an antidote. It protects, though shaken by ravages. Its roots firmly embrace the earth from which it has sprung, sustained by a reciprocal life force. The tree endures and by enduring, heals..”
Abed Al Kadiri
Edition 4 - 2026 | 1000 Houses of Paper
Edition 4 — 2026 | 1000 Houses of Paper
Children Engaged
Art Kits Distributed
As a response to the ongoing Israeli war on Lebanon, Today I Would Like to Be a Tree expands into a nationwide mobile artistic and psychosocial initiative engaging displaced and crisis-affected children across Lebanon, with a particular focus on remote districts, underserved communities, collective shelters, and public schools with limited access to cultural and emotional support programs.
EDITION 4
1000 Houses of Paper | Lebanon
2026 - Ongoing
The project took the form of a large-scale site-specific mural at Katara Art Center in Doha, Qatar, developed over fourteen days through a sustained process of perseverance and dedication. The mural was later sold in fragments, with all proceeds donated through the Qatar Red Crescent to support more than 200 displaced families.
EDITION 3
Lebanese Valley | Doha, Qatar
2024
Initially conceived as a site-specific mural inspired by the Bois de Vincennes in Paris, the work was intended as a reflection on nature, trees, and the landscape surrounding the artist. The escalating violence in Gaza, however, radically transformed its direction. By the time Abed Al Kadiri’s exhibition, Genealogy of Repair, opened to the public in Paris on 17 October, 2023, the mural had become The Red Olive Tree, a tribute to Palestinian children living through the devastating realities of war.
The olive tree, a timeless symbol of rootedness, belonging, and resilience, was painted entirely in red, standing as both a witness to violence and a refusal of erasure. Proceeds from the sale of the work were donated to the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund (PCRF).
As a response to the ongoing Israeli war on Lebanon, Today I Would Like to Be a Tree expands into a nationwide mobile artistic and psychosocial initiative engaging displaced and crisis-affected children across Lebanon, with a particular focus on remote districts, underserved communities, collective shelters, and public schools with limited access to cultural and emotional support programs.
EDITION 4
1000 Houses of Paper | Lebanon
2026 - Ongoing
EDITION 2
The Red Olive Tree | Paris, France
2023
The escalating violence in Gaza transformed the direction of the work. By the time Abed Al Kadiri’s exhibition Genealogy of Repair opened to the public on 7 October, 2023, the mural had become The Red Olive Tree - a tribute to Palestinian children living through the devastating realities of war. The olive tree, a timeless symbol of rootedness, belonging, and resilience, was painted entirely in red, standing as both a witness to violence and a refusal of erasure.
EDITION 1
A Reaction To Suffocation | Lebanon
2020
This project attempted to counter the devastation we felt after the Beirut port explosion. At once a tribute to our friend, the late Jean-Marc Bonfils, architect of the East Village building, who passed away in his apartment in that same building, and a contribution to rebuilding lost homes.
The third edition took the form of a large-scale, site-specific mural at Katara Art Center in Doha, Qatar, developed over fourteen days through a sustained process of perseverance and dedication. The mural was later sold in fragments, with proceeds donated through the Qatar Red Crescent to support displaced families in Lebanon. In parallel, proceeds from the sale of another mural provided essential support directly to more than 100 affected families.
This project attempted to counter the devastation we felt after the Beirut port explosion. At once a tribute to our friend, the late Jean-Marc Bonfils, architect of the East Village building, who passed away in his apartment in that same building, and a contribution to rebuilding lost homes.