Palestine
A tribute to the many invisible faces who persevere -through swollen hearts and fingers - to stitch their national identity into immortality. Palestinian tatreez has become a visual cry for freedom, an untamable force which finds momentum in the painstaking exercise of creating tiny crosses in a unison call for justice. To all the unknown soldiers who continue to embroider in refugee camps, in makeshift homes, between residencies and shelters, awaiting visas and permissions and dreaming of a better future, thank you for suturing the collective wound into new hope every day.
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“Art is the highest form of hope”
Gerhard Richter- German artist
Hopemaker- 38cmx38cm
Rooted- 61cmx46cm
Once you destroy the (olive) tree, once you root out its heart, you lose the claim to this land.
Magic Carpet- 36cmx36cm
Magic Carpets are as old as time. Some trace their origins to the king Solomon's legend, others to the 9th c. 1001 Nights, and some found earlier evidence in Persian and Indian folklore. They express our longing for distant adventure and escape. Those of us who can’t cross borders do so in our minds; perched on luxurious silk threads and bound for glorious fantastical lands.
Circle of Life- 40cmx40cm
This painting focuses on the magic of regenerating life; on the power of renewal and of survival. It is about the potential for continual reinvention. Let us mark every renewed opportunity. Let us note the reliability of second chances; the generosity of time; the possibility behind each new beginning. And let us celebrate Life!
This Earth I- 40cm
"On this earth there is that which deserves life"
A quotable line by Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish, has been on my mind a lot lately. Although I used Palestinian cross-stitch embroidery (tatreez) as an homage to the writer, I mean to dedicate it to many.
This Earth II- 50cm
We all share this Earth and from it, look up at the same Moon.
Live To Fight Another Day- 40cm
We each fight our own daily battles. And regardless of how small or invalid or insignificant or uncomfortable or unreasonable they may seem to others, every day we’re still here is a victory.
Thirty Percent- 82cmx55cm
Thirty Percent: 30 PERCENT refers to the roughly 30% population of minors that make up the population of the world; one billion of them living in poverty today. It urges you to consider them when you weigh in on world matters. It shows you the darkness that too many of them live in, our mistakes forever stitched onto their faces. 30 percent. Let’s try to do better by them.
The Genie is Out of the Bottle- 60cmx60cm
The original story of the “genie in the bottle” appeared in the tales of One Thousand and One Nights, where a fisherman comes across a jar and opens it to reveal an evil genie (or djinn) and then figures a way to outwit it and trap it back in the jar, saving himself from harm. Contrary to popular belief, the story of Aladdin and his genie was not in the original One Thousand and One Nights, but was later added in translation by French Orientalist Antoine Gallant in the 18th century, after he heard it told by a Syrian storyteller in Paris. In that original version, Aladdin was not Arab but Chinese!
With time, the expression “The Genie Is Out Of The Bottle” came to mean that something that has happened cannot be undone - that things are forever altered and cannot be retracted.
With the events that have occupied our minds and our headlines in the past two years, many genies have come out of many bottles and we are all living through new normals; some harder, some sadder and some born out of desperation with a renewed sense of hope for a better tomorrow.
The Taste of Freedom- 61cmx51cm
What does it taste like to have nothing to lose?
Joy- 36cmx32cm
We fight back by living. We fight back by creating our own reality within; by dreaming, by believing, by finding beauty in the little moments, by living our love- every minute of it. I say we find laughter and maybe, just maybe, joy will begin to heal what is already lost.
Ardh- 50cmx40cm
Ardh أرض- in Arabic has two meanings: The Earth and The Land. Whether your earthly quest is centered on our planet, or the piece of land that defines you, “Al Ard” will always be significant to each of us. It unites us and divides us.