Dreams Rising Artist Talk: Gaza Artists Malak Al-Absy and Mohammed Qraiqe

Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip as young as 14 years old have endured four major Israeli military offensives. They live under an Israeli military blockade which controls who goes where and when, which goods can enter and exit Gaza, and which patients can seek specialized health care abroad. And yet, they are dreaming of a better future.

The Museum of the Palestinian People is pleased to introduce a new exhibition that invites visitors to imagine a better future for Palestinian children in Gaza. Working with a team of youth specialists, curator Ahmed Mansour asked children to paint a vision of their future.

The exhibition was envisioned and created in memory of the 67 Palestinian children killed in the May 2021 Israeli military offensive on the Gaza Strip. The exhibition features artwork created by 11 child and youth artists in Gaza in collaboration with Sama Center for Art and Culture.

This event is a conversation with two of the young artists featured in the exhibition: 16-year-old Malak Al-Absy and 21-year-old Mohammed Qraiqe. The event will be moderated by Ahmed Mansour, the curator of Dreams Rising and the director of programs at the Museum of the Palestinian people.

Malak Al-Absy, 16, is a Palestinian artist from Gaza who was born in 2006, the year before the Israeli blockade closed the Gaza Strip to the rest of the world. Malak has lived through four major Israeli military offensives in the 2008, 2012, 2014, and 2021. She started to paint from a young age and has participated in several local art exhibits in Gaza City. Through art, Malak tries to explore the idea of love in the war-torn Gaza.

Mohammed Qraiqe, 21, is from the Shujaiya neighborhood in Gaza City. His talent as an artist emerged when he was five years old. He was adopted by several art institutes in Gaza before he started making his way to international exhibits. Mohammed has toured Dubai, Tunis, Lebanon, and Chicago with his art. He’s currently finishing his Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science at a university in Norway.