The Show is On!

I haven’t blogged for a few days because I took a flight over to Ireland to see the Palestine Postcard Project exhibition at Uillinn Gallery in Skibbereen. I wanted to see the art for myself and also have an opportunity to buy some of it and contribute to the fund-raising appeal for UNRWA.

It was a marvellous event. The opening took place on Saturday 18th October, just after West Cork for Palastine’s Gaza peace protest that has been taking place weekly in Skibbereen for the past two years. We marched with Palestine flags along Skibbereen high street in a light drizzle, the traffic making way for our procession. At the crossroads, there were speeches, announcments and poetry, before we doubled back to the gallery for the opening.

The gallery was very full. The event attracted many people who would not have felt comfortable in a protest march, but wanted to support this fund-raising event for Gaza. After the speeches, including one from the mayor, everyone began examining the artworks, remarking how beautiful they were… and so varied in style!

The complimentary wine flowed and the purchases began… One by one, postcard disappeared from the strings that held them – and new ones appeared in the spaces as if by magic. My friend Nasser, a Palestinian, purchased a lovely acrylic painting of a Gazan child carrying two huge water containers. There were too many beautiful creations to be happy with only one purchase.

Some of the art addressed Gaza directly: miniature protests or scenes from the past two years of genocide. Other artists had elected to follow their own themes whether they be abstract, figurative or nature.

The opening day raised a remarkable €5000 in sales! The exhibition will remain open all week with a grand closing event on Saturday 25th October. The artworks are being changed every day, so keep returning and see what you find!

Jonathan Wonham (author of poetry books Ceasefire Now! and Dystopia Persecutia)