Palestine: Art as a Form of Resistance | Robina Nguyen

In 1937, the Paris World Fair displayed Pablo Picasso’s mural-sized anti-war oil painting expressing his outrage against war with Guernica. Norman Rockwell’s “The Problem We All Live With” sparked a 1964 protest against racial segregation in schools. More than two decades later, the Guerrilla Girls—an anonymous group of female artists—left behind a poster that begged the question: “Do women have to be naked to get into the Met Museum?”

20th and 21st century movements have always used art to reaffirm political existence, and Gaza’s once-thriving art scene is no exception — as Israel continues pushing 2 million Gazans to the brink of death, Palestinians and their allies are using art as an expression of resistance. 

Disobedient’s Articles Editor Robina Nguyen has compiled a non-exhaustive list of artists, from internationally-recognized painters to Instagram poets, who have picked up their paint brushes to leave behind their own strokes on history’s canvas.

Mosaic by Louise Malone.

PAST:

Toni Morrison (m. 1931-2019) was an American novelist and editor known for her examination of the Black female experience. In 2006, Morrison was one of the 18 writers published in The Nation who signed a letter in solidarity with the Palestinian people. She was born in Lorain, Ohio as the second of four children in a family that had a deep appreciation for Black culture. “In times of dread, artists must never remain silent,” said Morrison. “This is precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal.” 

Mahmoud Darwish (m. 1941-2008) was a Palestinian poet and author, often feted as a “resistance poet” and “Palestine’s national poet.” His words expressed the love and longing of Palestinians deprived of their homeland, which was taken by Zionist militias to make way for present-day Israel. Darwish was born in the village of Birwa to parents from middle-ranking peasant families. When he was six, Israeli armed forces attacked the village and Mahmoud’s family fled to Lebanon. As a young man, Darwish’s political activism and public recitations of his poetry got him arrested and imprisoned — since then, he has published more than 30 volumes of poetry and eight books of prose. In 2008, he died of complications following open-heart surgery.

Refaat Alareer (m. 1979-2023) was a poet and professor of literature at the Islamic University of Gaza for 15 years, where he taught thousands of students. Alareer is the author of “If I must Die,” a poem written before his death in an airstrike by the Israeli military in December. “I am an academic, probably the toughest thing I have at home is an Expo marker,” said Alareer in a video uploaded by Al Jazeera. “But if the Israelis invade, if they charge at us, open door to door to massacre us, I’m going to use that marker, throw it at the Israeli soldiers, even if that is the last thing I will be able to do. And this is the feeling of everybody. We are helpless and we have nothing to lose.”

A mural by Adam Doyle AKA Spice Bag in homage to Refaat Alareer on Free Derry corner - Derry, Ireland. Instagram: @spicebag.exe

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Sliman Mansour  is a painter and sculptor, known as a “leading figure among contemporary Palestinian artists.” He was born one year before the Nakba (the mass ethnic cleansing of Palestinians during the 1948 Palestinian war). His use of color and imagery bring Palestinians’ resistance against the Israeli occupation to life. Many of his sculptures, for example, use cracks in mud as a metaphor for the “fragmentation of Palestine.” Mansour’s works are inspired by ancient history, drawing from Canaanite, Sumerian and Islamic art, as well as Arabic calligraphy. He is considered an artist of intifada (the Palestinian uprising) whose artwork captures the concept of sumud — a common term used to describe Palestinian steadfastness and nonviolent everyday resistance against Israel’s occupation.

Malak Mattar  is a Palestinian painter and illustrator whose work has been exhibited in almost 80 countries. She started painting in 2014 during the 51 Day War, when Israel launched air strikes and a ground invasion of Gaza that lasted 51 days. Mattar received mentorship from her uncle and, at just 14, held her debut gallery exhibition in Gaza. Themes like resiliency, optimism and the longing for independence are often explored through Mattar’s expressionist and semi-abstract designs. Instagram: @malakmattarart.

A painting shared by Malak Mattar on Mother’s Day.

Emmalene Blake is an Irish muralist and teacher who has amassed nearly 40,000 followers on Instagram for her murals. She has created a series of murals inspired by Palestine, one of which being Masa, a little girl killed by an Israeli airstrike alongside her family. This work, including a poem she wrote about the experience of painting Masa after connecting with her aunt through social media, was featured on NPR last month. Instagram: @emmaleneblake.

Masa by Emmalene Blake.

Peonica Fernando is a UK-based illustrator who uses art as a tool to raise awareness of global events. As well as Gaza, she has also created art spotlighting the genocides in Sudan and Congo. According to a recent interview, Peonica “loves engaging with people about their everyday experiences, sharing stories, learning from others and exploring the many ‘different little curiosities that take her by surprise.’” Instagram: @bypeoni. 

Journalists who have reported on the ground in Gaza by Peonica Fernando.

Louise Malone is a Glasgow artist and alumni of the Glasgow School of Art. Louise has stood in solidarity with Palestine all her life. The country and its artists inspiring her mixed media work, from stained glass to Tatreez, a traditional form of Palestinian embroidery. Recently, Louise has thought often of the artists in Gaza, creating two watercolour paintings including words sharing these thoughts. “I often wonder about the artists of Gaza and the West Bank.I ask myself what has happened to their legacies lovingly created by their own hands. Have they been destroyed? Probably…and for what?”

A selection of these works is below. Instagram: @louisemaloneart.