A People by the Sea: Narratives of the Palestinian Coast
September 2021–September 2022
Guest curator: Inass Yassin
Assistant curator: Ahmad Alaqra
The Palestinian Museum Director General: Adila Laïdi-Hanieh, PhD.
A People by the Sea: Narratives of the Palestinian Coast sheds light on the history of the Palestinian coast. It considers possible futures by reviewing and reflecting on past experiences. Starting from the mid-18th century and ending in 1948, the exhibition allows for a re-examination of the Nakba through a presentation of two hundred years of historical landmarks.
The exhibition includes focused narratives: The first one highlights the rise of Akka (Acre) in the mid-18th century, highlighting its political, economic, urban, and architectural history before modern states’ formation in the region. A second narrative focuses on the rise of Yafa (Jaffa) in the 19th century, with the gradual concentration of capital and trade in Palestine’s coastal cities. This was accompanied by a growing European influence in the mid-19th century, which led to the 20th century Nakba and the fall of the country.
The history of the Palestinian people is one of a complex society with historical continuity on their land. The people of Palestine succeeded in forging diverse manifestations of their deep-rooted existence in the land, through a continuous history and in a semi-independent manner, outside the bounds of official state constructs and encroachments of invading powers that successively ruled the region for centuries - the last of which being the current colonial rule. The presence of an enduring and vibrant Palestine is evident through its urban, architectural, economic, social, and political ensembles and structuring, prior to modern nation-states’ formations and their ensuing demarcation of political borders. That presence is continuously established and reinforced through Palestinians’ steadfastness and will for self-determination, and their close bond with their land and sea.
Inass Yassin is a studio artist and curator. Her practice investigates urban and social transformations in Palestine since the late 1980s. She was the director of the Birzeit University Museum between 2010-2017. As a Fulbright grantee she obtained her MFA from Maine College of Art, in 2019. She also has a Master of Arts earned in 2009 from the University of Southampton, UK.
Historical Advisors: Professor Adel Manna, Professor Mahmoud Yazbek.
Artists: Amir Nizar Zuabi, Bashar Khalaf, Dima Srouji, Essa Grayeb, Manar Zuabi, Shareef Sarhan, Abed Abdi, Nasser Soumi, Nicola Tadros.
Collections and Contributions: George M. Al-Ama, Amjad Ghannam, Maha Abushusheh, The Palestinian Museum, NINO collection, Institute for Palestine Studies collection, American University-Beirut, Jehad Kmail, Ahed Izhiman, Ashraf Diwani, Noor Abu Hashhash, Raed Duzdar.
Donors: A. M. Qattan Foundation through the “Visual Arts: A Flourishing Field” (VAFF) Project, funded by Sweden, the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development, Bank of Palestine.
Press contact:
Haneen Saleh: hmakho@palmuseum.org
