Al Quds, wednesday 18 april 2007
See: www.alquds.com

Al-Bireh – Ahmad Salim – Yesterday, the International Academy of Art Palestine inaugurated on its premises a workshop within the framework of a project whose aim is to produce a book, a ‘Subjective Atlas of Palestine’. This project is supervised by the Dutch artist Annelys de Vet, aided by three others from the Dutch art and graphic design world.

Over 20 artists from various places on the West Bank are attending this week-long workshop. They are specialized in drawing, caricature, photography, art criticism and other areas.

According to Khaled Hourani, the academy’s Artistic Director, this atlas is a personalized and collective vision and interpretation of Palestinian artists, where they map their country from various perspectives; political, geographical and even humanistic. He stated to AlQuds that it will include drawings and photographs pertaining to issues such as the Wall, the map, the flag, landscapes, nature, clothing and food, all regarded from artistic, humanistic and critical perspectives.

He added that there will be written stories from the viewpoint of the participating Palestinian artists about their reality and the aspirations of their people. He also clarified that ICCO, a Dutch organization, will encourage publishing and distributing the Atlas in English worldwide. It is also expected to be published in Arabic in the future.

Hourani said that the Atlas project falls within the framework of preparing for the Academy’s educational and academic experimental programme, which will start in September and is dedicated to teaching contemporary arts.

It is worth noting here that Annelys de Vet had previously produced a similar atlas about the European Union from the perspective of artists from Estonia, and another atlas about the Netherlands.