After the war ended and we returned from forced displacement to Zrariyeh, I checked the workshop near the family home. I was shocked at first sight when I saw the extent of the damage and that I had lost my first dream for my project, which I had worked to build and develop for 8 years. But shortly after, I made my decision and started from scratch. I first worked on removing the rubble, reinforcing part of the workshop's roof and facade with wood, re-tiling the floor with ceramic, designing the decor and arranging what survived of its contents—books, drawings, pictures and equipment related to pottery—in the southern part that survived the destruction.
Art teacher Wafaa Bilal has reopened the 'ABajour' arts and pottery workshop in the town of Zrariyeh in Sidon district, south Lebanon, after it was damaged by an Israeli airstrike …