In Paris last week, I noticed this sign, dedicating a square in the 6th arrondissment to Mahmoud Darwish. Mahmoud Darwish Square (Place Mahmoud Darwich) was dedicated by former Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoë and President of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas on July 15, 2010. Delanoë said of Darwish: “He is a great poet, who we want to honor by naming [part] of Paris after him. He is not just any poet [but] a Palestinian poet, a poet whose inspiration is born of his suffering in exile.”
How appropriate, I thought, since Gallery Al-Quds will be having a special exhibition in November, in which 40 artists will interpret a Darwish poem.
Paris connections with the Gallery grow ever closer. In October of 2015 we will open a solo exhibition of work by Helen Zughaib in a new partnership with Galerie Mamia Bretesché. Later we will host an exhibition by one of that gallery’s Arab artists here in DC.
I have also forged a partnership with the Institut Culturel Franco-Palestinien (French- Palestinian Cultural Institute), which promotes cultural and artistic achievements of Palestinians to the French. Gallery Al-Quds will be working with them to offer opportunities for our artists to exhibit abroad, as well as to disseminate our exhibitions to their constituents through linking of our websites. I will also be assisting in a prize competition for Palestinian artists under 35.
Now that it is summer, we will be showing an eclectic mix of art for a few weeks, and preparing to open our Fall season with a show of exciting new work by Helen Zughaib. See you soon at the Gallery!
