“I wish my father had not been killed in the war, just so that I could call him father,” wrote Ali Harb, 12, in his poem titled “My Father’s Abuse.” The poem, which he wrote when he was 10, expresses his pain of seeing his father die in front of him in Syria. This line, placed next to a somber painting by Lebanese artist Sandra Ghosn, is one of the works displayed in a collective exhibition called “Haneen” in Beirut.

“Haneen,” which means “loving” in Arabic, is supported by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in collaboration with local nongovernmental organization Beyond and Lebanese artist Chadi Aoun. The exhibition aims to show the healing nature of art in post-war therapy and to provide a bridge between the Syrian refugee children in Lebanon and Lebanese and Syrian artists. Thirty-nine poems whose stanzas are displayed in the exhibition are written by Syrian children, and 47 artists have interpreted them through paintings, drawings, sculptures and sound installations. The theme of the exhibition is what the war in Syria represents for the children.

The exhibition, on display March 9-11, takes place at a venue that has a symbolic meaning going back to the Lebanese civil war (1975-1990): Beit Beirut, or "the Yellow House," which is on the Green Line that divided the city during the war.

Ali did not talk at all when he started at Beyond's art therapy program. Director of Beyond Joe Awad told Al-Monitor, “After two years of art therapy, he started opening up and expressing himself.” On the day of the opening of “Haneen,” Ali was ready to answer questions from the media.