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Palestinian posters are a common medium for political messaging in Palestinian activism. Often depicting common national iconography such as keffiyehs, olive branches, and the Palestinian flag, posters have been instrumental in crafting a national Palestinian identity. Poster art was used as a support for the Palestinian National Movement, where it also became a vehicle for artistic expression. Posters are often categorized under topics of peace and resistance, employing images of suffering, martyrdom, and cultural heritage.

The emergence of the Palestinian Poster Project Archives made poster art much more accessible to the public; as of December 2024, the site has 22,004 posters and 4,806 artists listed. The rise of the Internet and digitization has also led to a surge of preservation efforts and increased public reception of exhibitions.

History

Pre-1967

Posters were produced in Palestine as early as the late 19th century. As a result of a broader trend of globalization, French and British companies sought to profit off of travel to the Mediterranean, financing marketing campaigns that advertised tourism in the Holy Land. The earliest known Palestine poster was published in France and depicts a landscape adorned with olive branches (presently regarded as one of the principal symbols of Palestinian identity). Posters were also produced in the early 20th century protesting the British Mandate of Palestine. After the Nakba of 1948, a nationalist movement surged in which Palestinians sought a unified cultural identity. While previously the production of Palestinian posters was driven by commercial motives, the Israeli occupation prompted the assertion of cultural identity in Palestinian art through themes of land, exile, and resistance.

Post-1967

At the turn of the 20th century, the poster emerged anew as a style of Palestinian art largely informed by global solidarity movements, particularly in the wake of the violent aftermath of the 1967 Six-Day War (referred to in Arabic as the Naksa). Posters were produced by numerous political organizations, mainly the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) as a means of mobilization and dissemination of nationalist rhetoric. Due to their ease of replication, posters were universalized and rapidly became a primary medium for resistance and artistic expression, as well as a tool of interface between those inside Palestine and those exiled outside of it.

Post-Oslo Accords

The rise of the Internet allowed for a new wave of Palestinian cyber-activism. Democratized access to Palestinian poster archives meant there was an increased visibility of posters that might have not been seriously engaged with before, and the public could now interact with collections that only a select group of scholars previously had access to. Digitization of archives also meant that anyone could repurpose old posters, such as the “remixing” of the 1936 Zionist Visit Palestine poster, edited in protest of the West Bank barrier. In line with emerging technologies, posters became even more reproducible, and smaller artists could create digital posters to be platformed.

Exhibitions of the posters

There have been a number of artistic exhibitions that feature Palestinian posters as either the primary focus or as a significant component. Known exhibitions have been housed in art museums and university buildings in the United States, Belgium, and Palestine.

Preservation efforts and public reception

The Palestine Poster Project Archives (PPPA) was established by Arab studies scholar and curator Daniel Walsh as a means of accessibly preserving the history of Palestinian posters. In addition to Walsh’s physical collection, digitized versions of archival materials have been made available on the project’s website.

Walsh and the PPPA have been received with a number of controversies surrounding the works’ public exhibition. In 1983, curated posters from Walsh’s collection were exhibited in the UN General Assembly Building and were intended for display at the International Conference on Palestine in Geneva. An attending Israeli delegate submitted a formal complaint, calling the exhibition “more than anti-Israel”, and the exhibit was rapidly disassembled and its presence at the Conference was cancelled. Later, Walsh curated a group of Palestine posters (entitled the Liberation Graphics Collection of Palestine Posters) to be nominated for the UNESCO International Memory of the World Register. The project was nominated and considered for the register in 2014-2015, 2016-2017, and 2023-2024. It was rejected each time, and met with Israeli backlash that claimed its contents were anti-Semitic.

Recurring visual themes

Resistance

Resistance has been represented in Palestinian posters in a variety of ways, such as “Anti Armor Hunters” “Graveyard for Invaders” and “Al Karameh - The Symbol." These posters depict the Battle of Al Karameh fought between the Palestinian Liberation Organization and Israeli forces in 1968. Visually, the posters are in black and white and contain Arabic text. Militant language in their titles such as “hunters” and “invaders” gives more strength to the stakes of the armed resistance shown visually. The depictions of AK-47s, also referred to as the Kalashnikova is a recurring symbol in all three posters, but it is not only limited to the 1960s. For instance, Ghazi Iniam’s 1984 poster “Through Posters and Pictures 2” highlights the importance of the Kalashnikova as a symbol of armed struggle, as it takes equal importance to the figure shown in the poster. Organizations such as the PLO, Fatah, Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), Palestine Popular Struggle Front (PPSF), and the PLO Unified Information Office adopted images of armed struggle as well. In this time, artists would share their work amongst multiple organizations that included these symbols. These artists included Ghassan Kanafani, Tawfiq Abdel Al and Emad Abdel Wahhab, amongst others.

Cultural heritage and traditions

The most popular visual images and symbols of peace in Palestinian posters include the olive tree, the orange, the map of Palestine, the keffiyeh, and the key. The late 1970s to early 1980s saw a shift away from militant depictions of violence, instead valuing a poetic portrayal of resistance. This can be seen with artists like Helmi Eltouni and Sliman Mansour, as well as Abdel Rahman and Al Muzain. The late 1970s to early 1980s saw an increase of women in poster art, including Mona Saudi and Jumana Al Husseini. Emergence of tourism as a tool in Palestinian art also became popular. Julien Bousac’s L’archipel de Palestine orientale sees the artistic exploration of the Oslo Accords and how they manifest geographically. Tourism posters were also published by airlines in the 1970s - including by Air France and Sabena Airlines (3). The original goal of the Palestinian cause sought tourism as the forefront, before the expansion into military resistance and later, symbols of peace and hope.

Martyrdom

Many Palestinian posters commemorate the anniversaries of historical events, battles, and massacres as well as days of recognition like Martyrs’ Day or Prisoners’ Day. Posters of individual victims of the occupation are also incredibly common, often mythologizing the subject as a martyr. These subjects can be prominent political figures, unnamed children, and everyday liberation fighters. These martyr posters are omnipresent in both public spaces and in the homes of the victims’ families.

See also

• Palestine Poster Project Archives

• Palestinian art

References

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1. ^ AbiFarès, Huda Smitshuijzen. “Palestinian posters from the time of revolution: the collection of Ezzedin Kalak.” Khatt Foundation, 2008, https://www.khtt.net/en/page/4602/palestinian-posters-from-the-time-of-revolution#.
2. Walsh, Daniel J. The Palestine Poster Project Archives: Origins, Evolution, And Potential. Georgetown University, 11 Dec. 2011. DigitalGeorgetown, https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/handle/10822/557921, p. 39.
3. Stoler, Ann. “Archiving Praxis: For Palestine and Beyond.” UChicago Journals, vol. 48, no. 2, University of Chicago Press, Spring 2022. The University of Chicago, https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/full/10.1086/718625
4. ^ Shehadeh, Hanine. “Palestine in the Cloud: The Construction of a Digital Floating Homeland.” Humanities, vol. 12, no. 4, Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute, 1 Aug. 2023, https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/12/4/75
5. Walsh, Daniel J. The Palestine Poster Project Archives: Origins, Evolution, And Potential. Georgetown University, 11 Dec. 2011. DigitalGeorgetown, https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/handle/10822/557921, p. 28.
6. Walsh, Daniel J. The Palestine Poster Project Archives: Origins, Evolution, And Potential. Georgetown University, 11 Dec. 2011. DigitalGeorgetown, https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/handle/10822/557921, p. 34.
7. Walsh, Daniel J. The Palestine Poster Project Archives: Origins, Evolution, And Potential. Georgetown University, 11 Dec. 2011. DigitalGeorgetown, https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/handle/10822/557921, p. 28.
8. Walsh, Daniel J. The Palestine Poster Project Archives: Origins, Evolution, And Potential. Georgetown University, 11 Dec. 2011. DigitalGeorgetown, https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/handle/10822/557921, p. 29.
9. Walsh, Daniel J. The Palestine Poster Project Archives: Origins, Evolution, And Potential. Georgetown University, 11 Dec. 2011. DigitalGeorgetown, https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/handle/10822/557921, pp. 72-73.
10. ^ “Outcry Shuts Palestinian Poster Show at U.N.” New York Times, 21 Aug. 1983, https://www.nytimes.com/1983/08/21/world/outcry-shuts-palestinian-poster-show-at-un.html.
11. ^ “Collector Defends Palestinian Show Shut by U.N.” New York Times, 2 Oct. 1983, https://www.nytimes.com/1983/10/02/world/collector-defends-palestinian-show-shut-by-un.html.
12. ^ Walsh, Daniel J. The Palestine Poster Project Archives: Origins, Evolution, And Potential. Georgetown University, 11 Dec. 2011. DigitalGeorgetown, https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/handle/10822/557921, p. 3.
13. ^ Bartelt, Dana, et al. Both Sides of Peace: Israeli-Palestinian Political Posters. Contemporary Art Museum Raleigh, 1996, pp. 82-83, 90-91.
14. “International Poster Exhibition Opens Sept. 11 at Colorado State” Colorado State University, 1997, https://newsmediarelations.colostate.edu/1997/08/11/international-poster-exhibition-opens-sept-11-at-colorado-state/.
15. Palestinian Poster Project Archive. Special Collection: Blue Square Poster Exhibition, https://www.palestineposterproject.org/special-collection/blue-square-poster-exhibition.
16. “The Abu Jihad Museum for Prisoner Movement Affairs.” Librarians and Archivists with Palestine, https://librarianswithpalestine.org/featured-projects-members/museums/abu-jihad-museum-for-prisoner-movement-affairs/#:~:text=The%20Abu%20Jihad%20Museum%20for%20Prisoner%20Movement%20Affairs%20is%20a,Jerusalem%20in%20the%20West%20Bank..
17. ^ Davis, Rochelle and Dan Walsh. “‘Visit Palestine’: A Brief Study of Palestine Posters.” Jerusalem Quarterly, no. 61, Institute for Palestine Studies, 2015, https://www.palestine-studies.org/en/node/190753. p. 53.
18. Walsh, Daniel J. The Palestine Poster Project Archives: Origins, Evolution, And Potential. Georgetown University, 11 Dec. 2011. DigitalGeorgetown, https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/handle/10822/557921, p. i.
19. Palestine Poster Project Archives, https://www.palestineposterproject.org/.
20. Walsh, Daniel J. The Palestine Poster Project Archives: Origins, Evolution, And Potential. Georgetown University, 11 Dec. 2011. DigitalGeorgetown, https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/handle/10822/557921, p. 4.
21. Webster, Scott. "The 'Palestine poster' and everyday memoricide: Making killing memory mundane." Human Geography, vol. 14, no. 3, 20 Jul. 2021, https://doi.org/10.1177/19427786211032350.
22. Liberation Graphics. "Memory of the World Intro - 2023-2024." Palestine Poster Project Archives, https://www.palestineposterproject.org/posters/memory-world-intro-2023-2024.
23. Lazaroff, Tovah. "UNESCO dismisses reports that Palestinian poster collection nixed due to anti-Semitism." Jerusalem Post, 6 Feb 2015, https://www.jpost.com/arab-israeli-conflict/unesco-dismisses-reports-palestinian-poster-collection-nixed-by-anti-semitism-fears-390208.
24. Anti-Armor Hunters (1968) - https://www.palestineposterproject.org/poster/anti-armor-hunters
25. Sharaf, Rafeik. Graveyard for Invaders. Circa 1968 - https://www.palestineposterproject.org/posters/graveyard-invaders
26. Naba'a, Natheer. Al Karameh - The Symbol. Circa 1968 - https://www.palestineposterproject.org/poster/al-karameh-the-symbol#:~:text=%22The%20name%20al%20Karama%2C%20which,this%20relatively%20small%20battle%20soon
27. Walsh, Daniel J. The Palestine Poster Project Archives: Origins, Evolution, And Potential. Georgetown University, 11 Dec. 2011. DigitalGeorgetown, repository.library.georgetown. edu/handle/10822/557921, p. 35-36.
28. Kinney, Brandon. “‘The Rifle is the Symbol’: The AK-47 in Global South Iconography.” Journal of World History, vol. 34, no. 2, University of Hawai’i Press, June 2023. Project MUSE, muse.jhu.edu/article/902055, p. 282.
29. https://www.palestineposterproject.org/poster/through-pictures-and-posters-2
30. Walsh, Daniel J. The Palestine Poster Project Archives: Origins, Evolution, And Potential. Georgetown University, 11 Dec. 2011. DigitalGeorgetown, https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/handle/10822/557921, p. 37.
31. Walsh, Daniel J. The Palestine Poster Project Archives: Origins, Evolution, And Potential. Georgetown University, 11 Dec. 2011. DigitalGeorgetown, https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/handle/10822/557921
32. Kelly, Jennifer Lynn. “Asymmetrical Itineraries: Militarism, Tourism, and Solidarity in Occupied Palestine.” American Quarterly, vol. 68, no. 3, Sept. 2016. Project MUSE, https://muse.jhu.edu/article/631127. pp. 723-724.
33. Palestinian Poster Project Archive. Special Collection: Martyr’s Day/Martyrdom, https://www.palestineposterproject.org/special-collection/martyrs-daymartyrdom.
34. Mansour, Sliman. "Prisoner's Day - 1." Palestinian Poster Project Archive, 1980, https://www.palestineposterproject.org/posters/prisoners-day-1.
35. ^ Demos, T.J. "Disappearance and Precarity: On the Photography of Ahlam Shibli." Ahlam Shibli: Phantom Home, Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona, 2013, http://www.ahlamshibli.com/essay/tj_disappearance_and_precarity.htm, p. 11.
36. "Hero Ghassan Kanafani." Palestine Poster Project Archives, 1973, https://www.palestineposterproject.org/poster/hero-ghassan-kanifani.

• Palestinian arts
• Palestine (region)
• Posters
• Political art