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Symbols of Palestine 
Acrylic on canvas
Each canvas 2 x 2”
2024

Displayed with a stained glass kite and poppies used in a community art installation
I wanted to make these works to showcase the incredible culture and history of Palestine. Palestinians do not only suffer. They also resist, tell stories, steward their indigenous lands, and most of all live multifaceted lives. These works were inspired by Nathalie Arnold’s Daily Life in Palestine course and by the journalism of Bisan Owda, a Palestinian activist, storyteller, and filmmaker. The woman in the painting is Bisan, who wears a keffiyeh, or kufiya, a traditional Arab scarf which has come to symbolize Palestinian resistance to colonization.  It has distinctive patterns which symbolize the fishnets of the Gaza sea, the trade routes that have histroically run through the levant, and the olive trees which have been farmed in Palestine for thousands of years. 

These olive trees can be seen in the background as well. There are many ways plants are embedded in the lives of Palestinians- as symbols, as food, as commerce, as tradition, as connection. Olives are not just a food, the trees are symbols of rootedness and of the generational connection to the land. The olive harvest is a time of community and celebration and planting an olive tree is a gesture of reciprocity. Olive oil is the livelihood of many families and the basis of many dishes. You can find an incredible article about Palestinian olive oil here. 

I chose to include orange trees for simliar reasons. Jaffa was once the home of many Palestinian farmers who supplied themselves and the world with their famous Jaffa oranges. Since 1948, Israel has stolen and destroyed trees with near impunity. The orange has became a symbol of loss which can be read about in the short story The Land of Sad Oranges by Ghassan Kanafani. In destroying these ancient trees and traditions, Israel commits a form of violence that is not only financial and ecological but cultural as well. 

The kites are a reference to Refaat Alareer’s famous poem If I Must Die. I highly recommend you read this and other works of poetry by Palestinian authors and consider purchasing books from places such as Interlink  in order to support Palestinians and their families. 

The poppy is a symbol of martyrdom and of ecological reciprocity. This national flower is indigenous to the land like the Palestinians. The poppy is resilient and blooms even after destruction. It is often used as a symbol of those who have been killed by the Israeli occupation. To read more about poppies and other symbols I suggest this article. 

The watermelon is included because it reflects the colors of the Palestinian flag. It is often used in order to get around censorship of pro-Palestinian messages. You can learn about about this here. 

If you want to support Palestinians, please consider donating to my friend in Gaza through the link here.