{"product_id":"watermelon-art","title":"Watermelon Print Fundraiser for Writers in Gaza","description":"\u003cp style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003eWe are pleased to offer this exclusive print by artist, Yasmine Shash, created to raise funds for artists from Gaza.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003eHand carved and printed in her studio press in Cairo it is available now.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003eAll profits will go directly to writers\/artists and their families in Gaza. $3,000 has been raised and distributed so far.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003eThis is an open ended edition that started in October 2023 and continues to be printed as long as demanded. Every copy is signed, numbered and dated.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003e36cm x 50cm\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eABOUT THE WATERMELON PRINT \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhen Israel prohibited Palestinians from waving their flags in 1967, watermelons—native to Jenin—sided with Palestine. The watermelon’s skin and flesh are those of the Palestinian flag. Watermelons have also come to occupy an important place in contemporary Palestinian art. Different anecdotes have spread about the Israeli army preventing Palestinian artists from showing the flag in the late 1970s and early 1980s. When artist Issam Badr asked an Israeli soldier what if he wanted to paint a flower with the flag colors, the soldiers simply responded that any painting with these colors, including of a watermelon, would also be confiscated.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003eIn 2007—following the second intifada—Palestinian artist Khaled Hourani created the Watermelon Flag, a now-famous artwork of the sweet resistance symbol. Since then, Hourani has made several iterations and reproductions of the work. Today, many others are doing the same, either to make publicly engaging art, or to simply escape the algorithmic censorship on Palestine-related content on social media.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003eIn this work, a contemplation on the possibilities of reproducibility, I invite visitors to prints of the watermelon. It is an earthly gesture, a meditation on limitlessness, as well as the poetics of resistance. It was carved in the backdrop of the war in Gaza and the crisis of humanity it is spelling, as a simple act of presence, visibility and sharing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eWith thanks to Lina Attalah for her contribution to this text\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PalFest","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54169554420059,"sku":"Watermelon Print","price":50.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1038\/4723\/1835\/files\/watermelon.png?v=1790766185","url":"https:\/\/shop.palfest.org\/products\/watermelon-art","provider":"The PalFest Shop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}