Roots: In Solidarity
Roots is an ongoing collection of illustrations where I try to express my Arab roots as part of my identity and how I relate to them in my way. They often feature or are inspired by cultural symbols like the keffiyeh, scenes on enameled silverware, historical sites and more. These illustrations have also helped me cope with all the pain and suffering we’ve all been witnessing and channel my feelings into something productive. Standing in solidarity by showing my roots proudly and prominently.
Skull portrait - Digitally painted - Skulls are recurring elements in my art. They symbolize mortality (Memento mori) and the value of life. A skull also allows me to represent humanity in a way that ignores race or ethnicity. It can be a way to honour the dead and perhaps celebrate life. In this illustration I wanted to do a self-portrait without the focusing on my self and my face and instead focus on how I felt people see me for the past two years. Wearing a Keffiyeh everyday. Most interactions are actually pleasant and supportive but you do feel eyes looking up more often and its difficult to not feel self-conscious about it.
Genocide - Ink & Markers - By late October it was clear things were going to get much worse. This was Genocide clear as day and livestreamed in 4k. How do I even express this? I don’t want the skull to symbolize some kind of surrender to the idea that we should just watch as this happens. I tried to capture Palestinian embroidery in folk dress as best as I could to celebrate Palestinian culture and life.
Stand - Ink & markers - Wrapping yourself figuratively and literally in your culture can be protective and a way to cope and heal while simultaneously exposing you a little to others. Solidarity contains both the safety in standing together and the risk in taking a stand. Boots might help!
Defiance - Ink & markers - Inspired by the mass protests in Iraq in 2019, I felt the need to express some kind of support. I remembered a photo of a childhood friend waving the flag at a football game which I used as reference for the pose.
Enamel - Ink - Inspired by Iraqi enamelled silver and the traditional river scenes they depict.
Citadel - Ink - The ruins of a Roman temple in the Amman Citadel in Jordan. A hill in Amman that, because of the strategic location, has several archaeological sites from the different civilizations and cultures that inhabited the region through time.
Sunbird - Ink & Markers - I wanted to draw a sunbird, and while looking into reference photos and reading about the bird, I learned about the Palestine Sunbird and went for it.
Fire - Ink - A burning tent. An IV drip. An outstretched hand. Another moment etched into our minds.
Cedar & Watermelon - Digitally painted - The Lebanese and Palestinian struggles are very much connected and the visual interplay between the cedar tree and the watermelon slice really intrigued me.
Olive tree - Ink & Markers - Olive trees are symbols of strength, resilience, peace, and a hope for the future.
The Road - Ink & Markers - The road to peace goes through justice.
Protest - Ink & Acrylic ink - When will we stop talking about Palestine? when it’s it’s people are free and there is justice and peace.
Keffiyeh - Ink - Seeing a lot of products and stickers with the keffiyeh patterns on them I felt like something was always missing. So I tried to digitally create my own and it also felt like something was missing. Drawing it by hand finally felt right. Fabric is organic so we never see the pattern in a perfect state. Even a perfectly woven keffiyeh will over time show signs of wear with loose threads pulled and frayed. The inconsistencies and imperfections in a hand drawn pattern felt to me like the closest to authenticity I can get.
Camera - Ink & Markers - When press are targets and cameras are considered weapons, bearing witness is the least we could do.
Journal - Ink - Memories are little stories we tell ourselves about moments we lived through.
Poncho - Ink & Markers - An experiment with a different expression of the keffiyeh pattern. I’ve always liked cloaks and hoods.
Caravan - Ink - I usually steer clear of stereotypes, but a camel caravan every once in a while is still fun to draw.