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Disarming Design from Palestine
تصاميم مجرّدة من فلسطين
Stories
حكايات
Calender
التقويم Various locations, 2026
The absence of the meaning of home
غياب معنى البيت DDFP Gallery, Spring 2026
The meaning of home
معنى البيت On-line, 2025–2026
Finding our place
إيجاد مكاننا A year in retrospect, 2025
Movement in Practice
الحركة في الممارسة Brussels, Winter 2026
Things that don't sell
الأشياء التي لا تُباع Antwerp, december 2024
The only lexicon left
المعجم الوحيد المتبقي Kunsthal Gent, 22 June 2024
On artist-run solidarity platforms
على منصات التضامن التي يديرها الفنانون Kunsthal Gent, 21-22 March, 2024
Leaving 2023 in grief
مغادرة عام 2023 في الحزن A year in retrospect, 2023
Ways to translate solidarity to action
طرق ترجمة التضامن إلى عمل 20 October 2023
Infrastructures for solidarity through design
مقومات للتضامن من خلال التصميم Pianofabriek, Brussels, 5-6 October 2023
Disarming Design ?
تصاميم مجرّدة Forum+, February 2023
Qastina is to root myself again
قسطينة يعيدني لجذوري من جديد Bethlehem-Brussels, 15 February 2023
2022, a year to solidify
عام 2022 ، سنة يجب ترسيخها Palestine, Belgium and beyond, 2022
From Checkpoint bag to Blacksac
من شنطة الحاجز إلى البلاك ساك Al Quds, 2015 – Al Khalil, 2022
2021, a year in retrospect
٢٠٢١ سنة مفصليّة January 2022
Call for solidarity
نداء للتضامن Until liberation
Masters programme Disarming design
ماجستير معهد ساندبرج Sandberg Instituut Amsterdam, 2020 — 2022
Design for Disarming times
التصميم لأوقاتنا المجرِّدة Onomatopee publishers, 2020
Life of the Palestinian rug
ورشة البساط الفلسطيني Birzeit, September - October 2020
Facemask from Gaza
قناع الوجه من غزة August 2020
Hosh Jalsa
حوش جلسة Birzeit, 2018 – 2020
Marketing workshop
ورشة التسويق Birzeit, January – February 2020
Bags Prince Claus Awards
حقائب صندوق الأمير كلوز Amsterdam, 4 December 2019
Crossing Boundaries lecture
محاضرة "اجتياز الحدود" VCUQatar, Doha, 19-22 November 2019
Intimate terrains
إقتراب الآفاق Birzeit, 21–29 august 2019
The real and the absent
جسور من الماضي Birzeit, June – September 2019
Young artisans market
سوق الحرفيّين الشّباب Birzeit, 2019
Reworlding Ramallah
إعادة قولبة العالم : رام الله Birzeit, January – April 2019
Thought-provoking December gifts
هدايا محفّزة للفكر في فترة الأعياد Droog, Amsterdam, 6 December 2018 – 6 January 2019
Collective thinking
تفكير جماعي Hosh Jalsa, Birzeit, November – December 2018
My house is your house
البيت بيتك Design Museum Ghent, 16 February – 15 April 2018
Nieuwe Instituut
معرض نيوي انستتوت Het Nieuwe Instituut, Rotterdam, november 2017
Amman Design Week
أسبوع عمان للتصميم Darat al Funun, Amman, October 2017
Dream versus reality
الحلم مقابل الواقع Amman, September 2017
Dream Defenders
مجموعة "دريم ديفندرز" Ramallah, 17 August 2017
Design Museum Cologne
متحف التصميم، كولونيا Cologne, 14 May 2017
Henry Van De Velde Awards
جائزة هنري فان دي فيلد Bozar, Brussels, January – February 2017
Reaching beyond borders
تجاوز الحدود January, 2017
Welcome home
الدار دارك Ramallah, 8 – 30 October 2016
Hosh Qandah, create-shop 2016
حوش قندح، ورشة التصميم ٢٠١٥ Ramallah, August – September 2016
Gaza & Jerusalem, create-shop 2015
ورشة التصميم من غزة للقدس Gaza & Jerusalem, 26 August – 8 September 2015
Qalandiya international
قلنديا الدولي IAAP, Ramallah, 27 October – 15 November 2014
Ramallah, Create-shop 2014
ورشة التصميم ٢٠١٤ Ramallah, Bethlehem, 21 October – 7 November 2014
Eye on Palestine
العين على فلسطين KVS, Brussels, 24 March – 5 April 2014
Conflict & design
التصميم و الصراع C-Mine, Genk, 15 December 2013 – 9 March 2014
Bethlehem, create-shop 2013
ورشة التصميم ٢٠١٣ Bethlehem, 30 Sep – 12 Oct 2013
Ramallah, create-shop 2012
ورشة التصميم ٢٠١٢ Ramallah, Bethlehem, Hebron, Nablus, 1 – 15 September 2012
Subjective atlas of Palestine
أطلس فلسطين الذاتي Ramallah, 2007
Watermelon wallet
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Thought-provoking designs
تصاميم لتحفيذ الفكر

Watermelon wallet
محفظة البطيخ

Cross stitched coin purse

Red, black, white and green – the colours of the watermelon, and of the Palestinian flag. After the war in 1967, the Israeli occupation forces prohibited the display of the Palestinian flag and its colours. As a form of protest, people would carry around slices of watermelon instead. Before the Oslo accords, in the Gaza Strip, young men were even arrested for carrying sliced watermelons – for displaying the Palestinian colours.

The Palestinian flag remains a contested symbol, forbidden under Israeli law and even denied during peaceful solidarity protests in Berlin in 2022. Let us keep carrying slices of watermelon as signs of resistance. This Cross-stitch coin purse features its pattern, symbolising protest and solidarity. The piece has been meticulously handcrafted by skilled women in Gaza city. It’s designed by Gaza based architect Ibrahim Muhtadi and inspired by the Watermelon flag of Khaled Hourani.

 

Design
  • Ibrahim Muhtadi (PS)

    Ibrahim Muhtadi is a Palestinian designer and architect from Gaza City and a core member of Disarming Design from Palestine. His multidisciplinary practice spans architecture, product and jewelry design, calligraphy, and cultural craftsmanship, drawing deeply on Palestinian heritage and identity. Following the destruction of his studio in Gaza in 2023, Muhtadi continues his work from Belgium, where he plays a vital role in sustaining Disarming Design’s practice, networks, and commitment to cultural continuity through design.

    Muhtadi coordinates the development of our products and production processes, contributing to design development, quality control, and coordination with artisans. He also represents the project in exhibitions, workshops, and public events, helping to communicate its values and narratives internationally.

    www.ibrahimmuhtadi.com

Production
  • Women groups in the Gaza strip
    The embroidery work on the watermelon wallet was created by skilled refugee women groups in the Gaza strip. They are talented individuals rather than an organization.

  • Material: DMC threads on cotton fabric (black cotton, red linen), YKK black zipper

    Size: ± 7 x 11cm

€24,95

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How can design help counteract unjust realities Rug industry was an essential part of their lifestyle Define what is needed to enhance social, political and emancipatory impact Disarming is an approach that positions design as a cultural tool to oppose oppression Storytelling can be seen as a form of resilience and resistance Giving space to other knowledges through a design process Collective memories highlight relationships that allow a crossing and intermingling between differences. Exploring how design can be a vehicle for political resistance and solidarity Investing in conditions for a learning experience that focuses on economic, political and artistic independence How to present work online and reach the right audience? Extraordinary people working in areas where cultural expression faces challenges The effect of occupation on local design and how it restricts craft and product development What does it mean to be Palestinian today, and how to express that through locally made designs? Overviewing methods and exercises on oral tradition A place for knowledge exchange and community building in relation to contemporary design How can we reflect, integrate and interact with oral tradition? “The only thing that gets me going is sharing stories.” What roles do listening, remembering and going public play in the performance of oral history? Ticking needles, curious questions, whispering experiments, rhythmic embroideries and a ping pong of ideas Supporting students and designers on reviving their industries of handicrafts and innovative production Can we think of freedom beyond a logic of progress? Learning together while doing Creating space for artists to link their designs with local histories. A collaborative process with high emphasis on creativity, collaboration, making and quality We felt powerless and were struggling how to relate to this uncomfortable truth Crafts are a social act that relates to the sense of a place, how a community is built How can we envision a political horizon beyond the realities around us? "Today in Birzeit." What is ‘home’? When and where are we at home? How can we change our surroundings and how can design contribute to the quality of life? Collaboratively developing a series of thought provoking products Showing the disarming reverse side of the black-and-white image
About Contact
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The design is an invitation to the world to look closely Catalyse a broader view and prevent people from covering Reminding us to bear a greater responsibility towards life The false accusation may have ended, but the occupation has not Caring for identity is as important as protecting health itself Aside from their cultural significance, these seeds carry options for our future survival Catalysing a more open view and preventing people from covering over their own eyes when it comes to Palestine The more time we spend together, and listen, the more stories are unveiled A rapidly growing but comparatively small niche of Palestinian science fiction Sublime landscapes, tranquil urban scenes, frolicking children; who would associate these images with Palestine? “Record! I am an Arab, and my identity card is number 50 000” The Hirbawi factory is one of the only remaining factories to manufacture keffiyeh locally Wearing this unique piece on becomes both a political statement This apron shows what is the one and only recipe for its artist Our roots hold strong and silently in the earth Our trees are like our children The shared taxi is part of the West Bank urban landscape There are no possibilities of movement, since all the squares on the board are occupied Erasing the Israeli checkpoints from the landscape and envisioning a Palestine free from the occupation “We love life whenever we can” An illegal apartheid wall, on a scale impossible to imagine A flourishing craft industry established during the time of Roman rule in Palestine The artist decided to declare the existence of a non-existent state Only two soap factories survive today The occupation also takes part of the body and mind Living under occupation is an attack on people’s mental strength Most importantly they had the “Made in Palestine” tag on them The pattern of this keffiyeh is found and copied in Palestine Shoes have a long tradition as symbols of opposition and defiance You begin to realise that you have become yet another victim of the spell “I felt confused, between humiliation and joy" The birds’ freedom of flight and movement is in sharp contrast Behind each of these numbers there is a personal story The plates connect different locations in the world to Gaza The embroidery on this scarf is based on a traditional scarf in Gaza Travelling with a Palestinian Authority passport is still subject to many limitations Is it even possible to be neutral in situations of oppression? Why do we too rarely address the contemporary reality of this city and region Talking about Palestinian football is rare, although there is a national team This tailor-made garment is fragile Why can’t we be as generous as nature itself?
About Contact
facebook
The design is an invitation to the world to look closely Catalyse a broader view and prevent people from covering Reminding us to bear a greater responsibility towards life The false accusation may have ended, but the occupation has not Caring for identity is as important as protecting health itself Aside from their cultural significance, these seeds carry options for our future survival Catalysing a more open view and preventing people from covering over their own eyes when it comes to Palestine The more time we spend together, and listen, the more stories are unveiled A rapidly growing but comparatively small niche of Palestinian science fiction Sublime landscapes, tranquil urban scenes, frolicking children; who would associate these images with Palestine? “Record! I am an Arab, and my identity card is number 50 000” The Hirbawi factory is one of the only remaining factories to manufacture keffiyeh locally Wearing this unique piece on becomes both a political statement This apron shows what is the one and only recipe for its artist Our roots hold strong and silently in the earth Our trees are like our children The shared taxi is part of the West Bank urban landscape There are no possibilities of movement, since all the squares on the board are occupied Erasing the Israeli checkpoints from the landscape and envisioning a Palestine free from the occupation “We love life whenever we can” An illegal apartheid wall, on a scale impossible to imagine A flourishing craft industry established during the time of Roman rule in Palestine The artist decided to declare the existence of a non-existent state Only two soap factories survive today The occupation also takes part of the body and mind Living under occupation is an attack on people’s mental strength Most importantly they had the “Made in Palestine” tag on them The pattern of this keffiyeh is found and copied in Palestine Shoes have a long tradition as symbols of opposition and defiance You begin to realise that you have become yet another victim of the spell “I felt confused, between humiliation and joy" The birds’ freedom of flight and movement is in sharp contrast Behind each of these numbers there is a personal story The plates connect different locations in the world to Gaza The embroidery on this scarf is based on a traditional scarf in Gaza Travelling with a Palestinian Authority passport is still subject to many limitations Is it even possible to be neutral in situations of oppression? Why do we too rarely address the contemporary reality of this city and region Talking about Palestinian football is rare, although there is a national team This tailor-made garment is fragile Why can’t we be as generous as nature itself?
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