Spring 2012

Palestinian arts are flourishing this spring. Among the winners of the Abraaj Capital Art Prize 2012, awarded at Art Dubai in March, is Palestinian artist Taysir Batniji. The Abraaj Capital Art Prize was founded in 2008 and is in its fourth edition. The aim of the prize is to give talented artists the opportunity to break new ground and showcase new work that is reflective of the rich artistic and cultural heritage of the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia region. It rewards artists on the basis of a proposal rather than completed work. The winning artists then go on to create the works, which form part of the Abraaj Capital Collection. You can also see the work of many contemporary Palestinian artists at the Dubai Art Fair, March 22-29.  
www.artdubai.ae 

While many Palestinian artists study and or work abroad, young artists now receive excellent training at The International Academy of Art, Palestine, an institution which specializes in higher education programs in the visual arts. As the directors state “The Academy currently offers a BA in Contemporary Visual Art… The Academy is a unique place for the development of the creative talents of Palestinians via its four-year program of study, which is open to all applicants. Our main aim in establishing an academy of art is to nurture the creative potential of Palestinians and to foster originality of thought, while creating a space for the development of individual expression.”

Directed by prize-winning artist and educator Khaled Hourani, the academy also boasts visiting professor Suleiman Mansour, a visionary artist and a radical voice for the arts in the 70’s and 80’s, when arts and agricultural academies were vetoed in the West Bank and Gaza (and when it was illegal to produce paintings in the colors red, green, black and white). 

This Spring at the Gallery, our colors are flying with work by Helen Zughaib, Manal Deeb and Mona El Bayoumi. Come by and cheer them on.