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Within the Festival Actoral, La Marelle and Montevidéo have extended an invitation to writer Valérie Cachard for a literary happening dedicated to her pioneering project, Des mots sur un mur (Writings on a Wall). On Wednesday, September 27, at Montevidéo in Marseille, Cachard is poised to unveil pieces of her evolving text, inspired by the uncountable engravings written on the walls of Beirut between October 2019 and October 2023.
Filled with erased or crossed out words, drawings and elements that have adorned the walls of Beirut since October 2019, Valérie Cachard interlaces a sonorous and modular text. Her work delves into unfolding history, probing notions such as rebellion, revolution, consciousness, the aspiration to forge a new memory, exuberance of life, self-censorship, voyeurism, inertia, expulsion and breath.
Narrating Beirut is an attempt steeped in complexity; longing to hear it is yet more intricate. Amid wars and silences, anger and fear, individuals rise anew, wander through its streets, seek memories, bury their future and hope for the resurgence of the past. Tumultuous Beirut leaves Cachard speechless but challenges her to write with wounded words. It is this linguistic wealth that captivates and inspires the writer, whilst countless of oblivious and silent individuals walk down the wounded city streets. Cachard writes, transcribes diverse and divergent sentences and engraves a scattered capital’s memory across the globe.
Cachard’s words live on
“Des mots sur un mur is a project I have been nurturing since July 2019. This project inception is based on a dialogue I had in the summer of 2019 with a fellow author and friend, Vincent Fontano, whom I accompanied through the streets of Beirut. He came to experience and understand the essence of my city and to question the concept of forgiveness in regions that have been stained by wars. He left with no answers and countless lingering questions.
‘-How did you celebrate the war ending? Do you remember?
-I cannot remember that, as we didn’t celebrate it.
-Why didn’t you? I can’t understand.
-Same here, I struggle to understand your question.’
Two months after Vincent’s visit, protests broke out in the city center. Several sociologists and historians interpreted this movement as a distinct expression of the end of the civil war. It was a movement of civil disobedience characterized by joy, overflowing creativity and sharp humor. It was a festive, youthful movement that made me realize that I had crossed a boundary and that I was no longer part of the generation in the streets.
In Lebanon, every generation hopes the next one will succeed where it has failed and thus be able to revitalize the country’s economy, ensuring access to water, electricity and safety… I struggled to find my place in this movement. I even struggled to express my thoughts, yet I remained on the edge, alert and on the lookout. I concurred with the movement’s requests, was able to write them down but never to verbalize them. I stepped into the streets when there was a need to block access to the parliament in order to prevent proposals passing into laws that would exonerate the MPs’ ecological and financial crimes, but I lacked the initiative for independent action and never echoed the chanted slogans.
I walked on the sidelines, as I observed, listened to and got overwhelmed by the voices that kept growing louder. I collected them for months.”
Cachard’s solid commitment to documenting the essence of Beirut, woven into her vibrant tapestry of words and memories, sheds light on a unique perspective and a profound insight through a vivacious pen. She casts her gaze upon a city both fascinating and disturbed.
Marie-Christine Tayah
Instagram: @mariechristine.tayah