Khaled Abu Amer : I dipinti surrealisti della giovane artista di Gaza trascendono i confini
tag donne palestinesi e arabe
Sintesi personale
Una delle opere più conosciute di Reham Amawi, un artista di 24 anni della Striscia di Gaza, è il ritratto di Yasser Mortaja, il cameraman ucciso da Israele nel 2018.
Oggi, la giovane artista dice che passa otto ore al giorno a disegnare nel suo piccolo, silenzioso studio al centro di Rafah. La maggior parte dei suoi dipinti riguarda la situazione della Palestina.
Amawi deve il suo interesse per l'arte ai cartoni animati che ha visto da quando aveva sette anni. I suoi preferiti andavano da "Tom and Jerry" a " Siraj " , la serie educativa sulla Palestina. "I cartoni animati hanno stimolato la mia immaginazione e mi hanno portato a disegnare all'età di sette anni", ha dichiarato ad Al-Monitor. "L'arte era la mia materia preferita a scuola - avrei desiderato poter frequentare un corso d'arte tutto il giorno piuttosto che seguire altri corsi".Mentre studiava arte e artigianato all'University College of Applied Sciences , decise di dipingere con uno stile surrealista incorporando spesso simboli palestinesi - cavalli e ulivi - nei suoi dipinti.
Dopo la laurea nel 2017 ha partecipato a un seminario d'arte organizzato dalla Future Association for Culture and Development con sede a Rafah .
Al termine del programma ha ricevuto finanziamenti dal consolato americano di Gerusalemme per creare una mostra che ha chiamato " Re Art ". "Il mio più grande successo è stato quello di mostrare tre dei miei dipinti . Il primo dipinto si chiama "Silence of the World", un riferimento all'inazione del mondo sulla questione palestinese. Il secondo dipinto si chiama "Nascita di un popolo" e mostra che i palestinesi, come le piante, nascono di nuovo dopo la loro morte. Il terzo dipinto intitolato "Una rivoluzione popolare", raffigura donne palestinesi ".
Di solito dipinge con olio o acrilico su tela o legno. A volte disegna su carta.
“Voglio partecipare a concorsi di disegno nel mondo arabo e negli Stati Uniti in modo da poter trasmettere il messaggio della sofferenza dei palestinesi. Voglio anche sollecitare finanziamenti per i centri culturali di Gaza in modo che i talenti di ragazze e ragazzi non siano sprecati ", ha sottolineato .
Pochissimi artisti nella Striscia di Gaza possono superare gli ostacoli economici e di libertà di movimento per recarsi all'estero e partecipare a mostre nel mondo arabo. Uno di questi artisti, Fadi Thabet , ha tenuto una mostra fotografica dal titolo "Light in Gaza" a Beirut il 26 agosto.
Gaza è sede di diverse scuole d'arte come la Facoltà di Belle Arti dell'Università Al-Aqsa e il Programma di arti applicate . I suoi centri culturali includono la Culture and Free Thought Association di Khan Yunis, il Edward Said National Conservatory of Music e il centro di Al-Khaima City.
Atef Askou, direttore del Dipartimento delle Arti e dei Beni del Ministero della Cultura Palestinese nel governo di Gaza, ha detto ad Al-Monitor che ci sono 75 centri culturali a Gaza. "Il ministero sta lavorando per elevare il settore culturale fornendo ai centri ciò di cui hanno bisogno". Ha aggiunto che si cerca anche di collaborare con società di telecomunicazioni locali e altre imprese per sponsorizzare programmi d'arte.
ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT
Young Gaza artist's surrealist paintings transcend borders
GAZA CITY — One of the best-known works of Reham Amawi, a 24-year-old artist from the Gaza Strip, is the portrait of Yasser Mortaja, a cameraman who was killed by Israel in 2018.
Amawi drew the portrait of her friend on a dark canvas while standing at Gaza’s border with Israel — to the east of her hometown Rafah — during the Great Return March on April 8, 2019.
Today, the young artist says she spends eight hours a day drawing in her small, silent studio far away from the chaos of central Rafah. Most of her paintings concern the situation in Palestine.
Amawi owes her interest in art to the cartoons she's watched since she was seven. Her favorites ranged from "Tom and Jerry" to "Siraj," Palestine’s home-grown educational series. “Cartoons stimulated my imagination and led me to drawing at the age of seven,” she told Al-Monitor. “Art was my favorite subject at school — I just wished I could be in an art class all day rather than take other courses.”
While studying arts and handicrafts at the University College of Applied Sciences, she decided to paint in a surrealist style, often incorporating Palestinian symbols — horses and olive trees — into her paintings.“I chose this school of art because it has an unorthodox outlook toward reality. Very few painters use it — though it is very impactful,” she said.
After graduating in 2017, she participated in an art workshop called the South Pioneers Project put on by the Rafah-based Future Association for Culture and Development.
After the program ended, she received funding from the US Consulate in Jerusalem create an exhibition she named “Re Art.” “My biggest achievement was displaying three of my paintings for my graduation project in the exhibition ‘Re Art.’ The first painting was called 'Silence of the World' — a reference to the world’s inaction on the Palestinian issue. The second painting was called 'Birth of a People' and showed that Palestinians, like plants, sprout again after they die. The third painting, 'A People’s Revolution,' depicted Palestinian women.”
Amawi said that she usually paints with oil or acrylic on canvas or wood. Sometimes, she draws with charcoal on paper.
“I want to participate in drawing contests in the Arab world and in the United States so that I can get across the message of Palestinians’ suffering. I also want to urge funding for cultural centers in Gaza so that girls and boys' talents are not wasted,” she said.
Very few artists in the Gaza Strip can overcome economic and travel obstacles to journey abroad to participate in exhibitions in the Arab world. One such artist, Fadi Thabet, held a photo exhibition titled “Light in Gaza” in Beirut Aug. 26.
Gaza is home to several art schools such as the Faculty of Fine Arts at Al-Aqsa University and the Applied Arts Program at the Gaza Community/Training College as well as the Arts and Crafts department at the University College of Applied Sciences. Its cultural centers include the Culture and Free Thought Association in Khan Yunis, the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music and Al-Khaima City Center.
Atef Askou, the director of the Department of Arts and Heritage at the Palestinian Ministry of Culture in Gaza’s government, told Al-Monitor that there are 75 cultural centers in Gaza. “The ministry is working on elevating the cultural sector by providing the centers with what they need,” he said, adding that it also seeks to work with local telecommunications companies and other businesses to sponsor art programs.
Khaled Abu Amer is a writer and journalist from Palestine and a master's student in political economy
at the Islamic University. Amer writes on economic issues and their political impact for a number
of local and international newspapers and websites
Amawi drew the portrait of her friend on a dark canvas while standing at Gaza’s border with Israel — to the east of her hometown Rafah — during the Great Return March on April 8, 2019.
Today, the young artist says she spends eight hours a day drawing in her small, silent studio far away from the chaos of central Rafah. Most of her paintings concern the situation in Palestine.
Amawi owes her interest in art to the cartoons she's watched since she was seven. Her favorites ranged from "Tom and Jerry" to "Siraj," Palestine’s home-grown educational series. “Cartoons stimulated my imagination and led me to drawing at the age of seven,” she told Al-Monitor. “Art was my favorite subject at school — I just wished I could be in an art class all day rather than take other courses.”
While studying arts and handicrafts at the University College of Applied Sciences, she decided to paint in a surrealist style, often incorporating Palestinian symbols — horses and olive trees — into her paintings.“I chose this school of art because it has an unorthodox outlook toward reality. Very few painters use it — though it is very impactful,” she said.
After graduating in 2017, she participated in an art workshop called the South Pioneers Project put on by the Rafah-based Future Association for Culture and Development.
After the program ended, she received funding from the US Consulate in Jerusalem create an exhibition she named “Re Art.” “My biggest achievement was displaying three of my paintings for my graduation project in the exhibition ‘Re Art.’ The first painting was called 'Silence of the World' — a reference to the world’s inaction on the Palestinian issue. The second painting was called 'Birth of a People' and showed that Palestinians, like plants, sprout again after they die. The third painting, 'A People’s Revolution,' depicted Palestinian women.”
Amawi said that she usually paints with oil or acrylic on canvas or wood. Sometimes, she draws with charcoal on paper.
“I want to participate in drawing contests in the Arab world and in the United States so that I can get across the message of Palestinians’ suffering. I also want to urge funding for cultural centers in Gaza so that girls and boys' talents are not wasted,” she said.
Very few artists in the Gaza Strip can overcome economic and travel obstacles to journey abroad to participate in exhibitions in the Arab world. One such artist, Fadi Thabet, held a photo exhibition titled “Light in Gaza” in Beirut Aug. 26.
Gaza is home to several art schools such as the Faculty of Fine Arts at Al-Aqsa University and the Applied Arts Program at the Gaza Community/Training College as well as the Arts and Crafts department at the University College of Applied Sciences. Its cultural centers include the Culture and Free Thought Association in Khan Yunis, the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music and Al-Khaima City Center.
Atef Askou, the director of the Department of Arts and Heritage at the Palestinian Ministry of Culture in Gaza’s government, told Al-Monitor that there are 75 cultural centers in Gaza. “The ministry is working on elevating the cultural sector by providing the centers with what they need,” he said, adding that it also seeks to work with local telecommunications companies and other businesses to sponsor art programs.
Khaled Abu Amer is a writer and journalist from Palestine and a master's student in political economy
at the Islamic University. Amer writes on economic issues and their political impact for a number
of local and international newspapers and websites
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