In 2012 a UN report stated that Gaza would be uninhabitable by 2020. The report was written before the 50 days of conflict, destruction and bombardment that was Operation Protective Edge in 2014 and the missile exchanges in May/June 2021.

The ferocity of war and destruction experienced by Palestinians living in Gaza is truly horrifying. The terror of nightly bombings and the daily reality of living in an environment of destruction with limited access to electricity, fresh drinking water and basic commodities, is unimaginable.

Amos Trust is privileged to have been developing links and building relationships with the visual arts community in Gaza since 2015. On Location is our new project, which will promote, support and celebrate the power, resilience and vibrancy of the artistic community living and working under siege in Gaza today. For now, this means an online exhibition. But, at some point, we hope to be able to show the work ‘in real life’.

The project seeks to introduce the broader international community to the leading visual artists of the region and to explore the motivations, frustrations and realities of being a visual artist in Gaza.

The Zimbabwean curator, Raphael Chikukwa, stated, “when words fail, art speaks.” We hope that On Location will provide an additional platform and opportunity for the artists of Gaza to speak to the world.

James Walmsley
Project Curator