Drawing 13

A Tower of Hope

The drawing
In the middle of the white sheet of paper, a drawing of a standing tall figure, not just any figure, but of a human made of dreams, stitched from the fragments of everyday life. The arms stretching wide, still with a bit of fear, in a welcoming embrace, the legs firmly planted on the ground, like trees growing from the soil of memory and hope. It is not just a drawing. It is a voice of hope.
Above the figure’s shoulders rises a house. Its roof is checkered with warm, earthy colours, windows peeking from behind, like eyes into a world that longs for safety.

The red door is slightly open. From its chimney, instead of smoke, grows a black burnt tree.
To the rightside, on the figure’s shoulder, a green tree grows beside a playground. Children are climbing, to reach a dream. A red car coming quietly.

On the left side, to he left, on the figure’s shoulder, a rainbow tower is planted. Block by block, colour by colour—a ladder to peacemaking for everybody, no one is excluded. It pierces the sky, without fear.
But then we recognise two figures, half dead, longing for their land, their home, will they reach the boarders?
And at the center of it all it is the child’s creation: neither a soldier, not a machine, but a guardian of hope, wearing the house as a sign for longing for a better future, the playground as a memory, and the rainbow as a future. The body is not just human, it is a home. A place where the human arms are not made for war but for a welcoming, And the legs are not for fleeing but for standing tall.

Kenan
Above the human figure, the name ‘Kenan’ appears in three languages—Latin, Arabic, and Hebrew. A whisper of unity. A public declaration that peace does not belong to one language, one people, or one territory. It belongs to all of us. Kenan means a territoty, it belongs to many nations, it has many meanings. A name with deep historical and cultural roots.
Future of Hope
This picture is not just a drawing, it is more, it is to show that we must seek for peace for all of us, instead of war: it is a message of hope. A child’s vision of a world where we should build houses using colours, and not weapons.

It is a very important message in a world full of conflict and war. We are standing at a pivotal moment, with conflicts raging across the globe and increasing tensions between world powers. It urges us to reconsider our collective role in shaping a future removed from conflicts.

The drawing shows that art can act as a lens through which different perspectives on war and peace could come together; a space in which dialogues arise and bridges can be built between past, present and future.

Linda Bouws is a curator, author and editor -in-chief, promoting peace and reconciliation in her art projects