Abdul Hay Mosallam Zarara: Various works (1976–1990)

Overview

The grounded political art of Abdul Hay Mosallam Zarara embodies his commitment to the Palestinian struggle for liberation and peace.

Zarara worked in the maintenance department of the Jordanian Air Force briefly before joining the Palestinian Liberation Organisation in the late 1960s where he developed his sawdust-and-glue relief technique and used his work to decry his homeland's violent suppression and promote international solidarity.

The works in this exhibition depict everyday Palestinian life, weddings, social gatherings and traditional celebrations. Through these vestiges, Zarara serves and represents historical information and impassioned prose. His works prominently feature a valuable record of an endangered tradition, culture and international solidarity movement with Palestine. The selection reflects Zarara’s formal technique and visual vocabulary, which includes an almost surreal use of the Palestinian keffiyeh, often intertwined with weapons or women’s hair and his depiction of rodent-like predatory monsters variously wielding missiles, harassing innocents and dragging along a helpless NATO.