Stitching Keffiyehs: Moving Images from Palestine
Razan AlSalah, Zeina Barakeh, Mona Rouhana Benyamin, Samia Halaby, Mona Hatoum, Jumana Manna, Larissa Sansour, Oraib Toukan
Curated by Tamar Beja, Asma Kazmi, and Gazelle Samizay
Exhibition dates: February 28 - March 16, 2024
Opening Reception: February 28th, 4-7 pm
Worth Ryder Art Gallery
Anthropology and Art Practice Building (AAPB Rm 116)
Near the intersection of College Avenue and Bancroft Way
Hours: Mon, Tues, Thur, Friday: 12-5 pm | Wednesday: 1-7 pm | Saturday 12-3 pm
Poster designed by Aziza Mamadaliyeva. Image credit: Jumana Manna.
The Worth Ryder Art Gallery is proud to present Stitching Keffiyehs: Moving Images from Palestine.
This important exhibition features works by renowned artists representing diverse communities from Palestine and its diaspora. At a time when Palestinian voices are increasingly censored and denied platforms for expression, Stitching Keffiyehs provides a vital space for dialogue and reflection on themes such as land, exile, war, occupation, ecological decline, technology, femininity, and the body. The exhibition includes film and video art spanning from 1987 to 2022 and offers a rare glimpse into the rich tapestry of Palestinian culture, experience, and resistance.
Sponsored by Arab Film and Media Institute, San Francisco • Center for Middle Eastern Studies • MENA@History of Art • Berkeley Center for New Media • Middle Eastern Language and Cultures • Arts Research Center • African American Studies & African Diaspora Studies • Department of Gender & Women's Studies
In the Media:
“‘Stitching Keffiyehs’ celebrates the stories of Palestinian culture, diaspora”
Rae Wymer, The Daily Californian, Mar 1, 2024
“‘Stitching Keffiyehs’ at Worth Ryder is artistic Palestinian ballad during political uncertainty”
Stella Occhialini, The Daily Californian, , Mar 6, 2024
Actress Pooneh Hajimohammadi’s voice echoes in a sequestered viewing room throughout UC Berkeley’s Worth Ryder Art Gallery. “Isn’t this the reason we’re having this conversation?” she retorts in Larissa Sansour’s dystopian fiction film “In the Future They Ate from the Finest Porcelain.” The question sets the tone for “Stitching Keffiyehs: Moving Images from Palestine” — a contemporary collection of film and video art depicting a diverse Palestinian diaspora amid a turbulent political landscape. Alone, they’re impressive feats of motion picture art, but contextually there’s a graver intonation. After all, isn’t there a reason we’re having this conversation?