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Disarming Design
from Palestine
تصاميم مجرّدة من فلسطين
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Disarming Design from Palestine
تصاميم مجرّدة من فلسطين
  • Shop
    المحل
  • Stories
    حكايات
  • About
  • Contact
    Thought-provoking designs
    تصاميم لتحفيز الفكر
  • theblacksac

    الحقيبة السوداء
    €199,00
  • Heirloom seeds

    بذور بلديّة
    €7,50
  • Nabulsi soap

    صابون نابلسي
    €6,00
  • Awakening Goggles

    Awakening goggles

    قناع الصحوة
    €25,00
  • State of Palestine

    دولة فلسطين
    €12,00
  • Gaza earrings ‘Love for life’

    أقراط غزة "نُحِبُّ الحياة"
    €175,00
  • ‘I am an Arab’ t-shirt

    قميص "سجِّل أنا عربي"
    €17,00 – €19,00
  • Cactus fruit candle

    شمعة الصبّار
    €8,50
  • Gaza Birdhouse

    Gaza birdhouse

    بيت العصفور الغزّاوي
    €12,50
  • Beyond First Impressions

    Beyond first impressions

    ما بعد الإنطباع الأوّل
    €25,00
  • Measuring inequality

    قياس عدم المساواة
    €35,00
  • Bird plate

    صحن الطّيور
    €30,00
  • Distance to Gaza

    المسافة إلى غزة
    €20,00
  • Coloured Keffiyeh

    Coloured keffiyeh

    الكوفية الملوّنة
    €25,00
  • Tears

    دموع
    €5,00
  • Qastina apron

    مريلة قسطينة
    €30,00
  • Watermelon flag

    علم البطّيخ
    €17,00 – €39,00
  • Face Mask

    Identity = health

    الهوية = الصحة
    €13,00
  • Christmas baubles from Bethlehem

    كرات عيد الميلاد من بيت لحم
    €7,00 – €9,00
  • Leaf Behind Ring

    Leaf behind ring

    خاتم "أترُك خَلفك"
    €45,00
  • Leaf Behind Earring

    Leaf behind earrings

    أقراط الأذن "أترُك خلفَك"
    €45,00
  • Unveiled souls

    أرواح مكشوفة
    €17,50
  • Reworlding Ramallah

    Reworlding Ramallah

    إعادة قولبة العالم : رام الله
    €12,50
  • Subjective atlas of Palestine

    أطلس فلسطين الذاتي
    €24,50
  • Freedom shoes

    أحذية الحرّية
    €145,00
  • Black Keffiyeh

    Black on black keffiyeh

    أسود على كوفية سوداء
    €25,00
  • Hasakah

    الحسكة
    €40,00
  • ‘Everywhere’ fisherman’s box

    صندوق صيّاد السمك "من كلّ مكان"
    €50,00
  • Yellow cab toy

    لعبة السيرفيس الأصفر
    €35,00
  • Watchtowers and water tanks game

    لعبة أبراج المراقبة وخزّانات المياه
    €195,00
  • Checkpoint brush

    فرشاة الحاجز
    €17,50
  • Under construction

    صحن "قيد الإنشاء"
    €20,00
  • Poetic nights

    ليالٍ شعريّة
    €20,00
  • Stress ball

    كرة التّوتر
    €7,50
  • Proudly Made in Palestine

    صنع في فلسطين، بفخر
    €25,00
  • Everywhere Palestine

    فلسطين في كلّ مكان
    €60,00
  • Gaza scarf

    وشاح غزة
    €95,00
  • Disengaged observer outfit

    زيّ المراقب الدّولي
    €75,00
  • Barcelona or Madrid? No, Palestine!

    برشلونة او مدريد؟ لا، فلسطين!
    €0,50
  • Blanco

    القميص الأبيض
    €75,00
Stories
حكايات
From Checkpoint bag to Blacksac
من شنطة الحاجز إلى البلاك ساك Al Quds, 2015 – Al Khalil, 2022
  • Highlight
2021, a year in retrospect
٢٠٢١ سنة مفصليّة January 2022
  • Highlight
Call for solidarity
نداء للتضامن Until liberation
  • Highlight
Masters programme Disarming design
ماجستير معهد ساندبرج Sandberg Instituut Amsterdam, 2020 — 2022
  • Learning
Design for Disarming times
التصميم لأوقاتنا المجرِّدة Onomatopee publishers, 2020
  • Writing
Life of the Palestinian rug
ورشة البساط الفلسطيني Birzeit, September - October 2020
  • Learning
Facemask from Gaza
قناع الوجه من غزة August 2020
  • Highlight
Hosh Jalsa
حوش جلسة Birzeit, 2018 – 2020
  • Events
  • Learning
Marketing workshop
ورشة التسويق Birzeit, January – February 2020
  • Learning
Bags Prince Claus Awards
حقائب صندوق الأمير كلوز Amsterdam, 4 December 2019
  • Highlight
Crossing Boundaries lecture
محاضرة "اجتياز الحدود" VCUQatar, Doha, 19-22 November 2019
  • Learning
  • Speaking
Intimate terrains
إقتراب الآفاق Birzeit, 21–29 august 2019
  • Create-shop
  • Learning
The real and the absent
جسور من الماضي Birzeit, June – September 2019
  • Learning
Young artisans market
سوق الحرفيّين الشّباب Birzeit, 2019
  • Events
Reworlding Ramallah
إعادة قولبة العالم : رام الله Birzeit, January – April 2019
  • Highlight
  • Learning
  • Writing
Thought-provoking December gifts
هدايا محفّزة للفكر في فترة الأعياد Droog, Amsterdam, 6 December 2018 – 6 January 2019
  • Exhibiting
Collective thinking
تفكير جماعي Hosh Jalsa, Birzeit, November – December 2018
  • Learning
My house is your house
البيت بيتك Design Museum Ghent, 16 February – 15 April 2018
  • Exhibiting
Nieuwe Instituut
معرض نيوي انستتوت Het Nieuwe Instituut, Rotterdam, november 2017
  • Exhibiting
Amman Design Week
أسبوع عمان للتصميم Darat al Funun, Amman, October 2017
  • Exhibiting
  • Speaking
Dream versus reality
الحلم مقابل الواقع Amman, September 2017
  • Create-shop
Dream Defenders
مجموعة "دريم ديفندرز" Ramallah, 17 August 2017
  • Learning
Design Museum Cologne
متحف التصميم، كولونيا Cologne, 14 May 2017
  • Exhibiting
  • Speaking
Henry Van De Velde Awards
جائزة هنري فان دي فيلد Bozar, Brussels, January – February 2017
  • Events
  • Exhibiting
Welcome home
الدار دارك Ramallah, 8 – 30 October 2016
  • Exhibiting
  • Speaking
Hosh Qandah, create-shop 2016
حوش قندح، ورشة التصميم ٢٠١٥ Ramallah, August – September 2016
  • Create-shop
Gaza & Jerusalem, create-shop 2015
ورشة التصميم من غزة للقدس Gaza & Jerusalem, 26 August – 8 September 2015
  • Create-shop
Qalandiya international
قلنديا الدولي IAAP, Ramallah, 27 October – 15 November 2014
  • Exhibiting
Ramallah, Create-shop 2014
ورشة التصميم ٢٠١٤ Ramallah, Bethlehem, 21 October – 7 November 2014
  • Create-shop
Eye on Palestine
العين على فلسطين KVS, Brussels, 24 March – 5 April 2014
  • Exhibiting
Conflict & design
التصميم و الصراع C-Mine, Genk, 15 December 2013 – 9 March 2014
  • Exhibiting
Bethlehem, create-shop 2013
ورشة التصميم ٢٠١٣ Bethlehem, 30 Sep – 12 Oct 2013
  • Create-shop
Ramallah, create-shop 2012
ورشة التصميم ٢٠١٢ Ramallah, Bethlehem, Hebron, Nablus, 1 – 15 September 2012
  • Create-shop
Subjective atlas of Palestine
أطلس فلسطين الذاتي Ramallah, 2007
  • Highlight
  • Writing
Stories
حكايات

2021, a year in retrospect
٢٠٢١ سنة مفصليّة

    Tags:
  • Highlight

A year of transformation and repositioning
سنة تحوّل وتقييم
January 2022
2021 was a transformative year, we look back and weigh all that the months have brought. The upheavals in Palestine in Spring pushed us to sharpen our mission, position ourselves with international and institutional solidarity, re-create our website, and clarify our platform. We webbed our networks outwards, took a new step in the organisational structure, and, thanks to you, invested in more production from Palestinian artisans; all steps towards more impact and self-sufficiency.

In response to the upheavals in Palestine and the international awakening, we joined forces in several calls for cultural and academic boycott, notably with the Mosaic Rooms. It is simple, staying neutral in situations of oppression puts you on the side of oppressor. It is the responsibility of every individual to witness this injustice and to speak out in the noble plight of liberating the Palestinian people. ‘Disarming’ is not a metaphor: it is an approach which positions design as a cultural tool to oppose and defy oppression – and we laid that out and communicated it as clearly as we know.

May’s events catalysed the Watermelon flag: a new design by artist Khaled Hourani. The Watermelon embodies a legacy of resistance to the plethora of oppressions inflicted by the Occupation in Palestine; you can read the full story of the flag, going from artwork to solidarity statement here.

Thanks to your ongoing support, we were able to invest generously in new production: we worked with ceramics and leather artisans in Al-Khalil; glass craftspeople in Jabaa’; and the Toukan Soap Factory from Nablus. We also had the chance and pleasure to feature Vivien Sansour for the Palestine Heirloom Seed library, a remarkably timely project. In Bethlehem, we collaborated with Nadya Hazbunovna for screen-printed t-shirts and with Nadira Al Araj for her handmade silver jewellery. In Gaza, artist Mohammad Abusal worked with a variety of artists and artisans for poetic silver earrings, wooden sculptures, wicker birdhouses, embroidered scarfs and sleeping masks.

Watermelon flag

€17,00 – €39,00

Heirloom seeds

€7,50

Measuring inequality

€35,00

If you follow us on social media, you’ve probably already read about the array of hindrances we encounter upon working in connection to Palestine: dealing with shipping companies; the boxes that were returned and those that arrived weeks too late; new EU laws for importing non-EU products; fluctuating customs regulations; and financial transaction restrictions, to name a few. The Zionist occupation really does hinder every corner of the creative process.

But few things make us as proud as Areej Ashhab launching her own design label in 2021. Areej went from designing the Checkpoint bag during our 2015 create-shop with Al Ma’mal, to freeing it from the architecture of the occupation and building a mobile, versatile design label. Fully handmade in Palestine, theblacksac is made together with the Al Khalil based leather workshop Jelld. Watch Areej go through the full scope in this video by AJ+ or read the engaging interview ‘A bag with bagage’ by Sindhu Nair at SCALE-magazine.

Internally, we restructured our organisation. We scaled down our activities, in the capacity and talents of our core team in Belgium, and raised up our solidarity towards facilitating designs created in conscious and integrated ways. This led us to re-build our website: the design products and the collaborative projects are the two communicating, inseparable chapters of Disarming design from Palestine. It also allowed us to archive the vast range of activities that we have actively taken part in, and that are at the root of where we stand today.

  • Sascha Krischock built the website; Arno Huygens visualised its structure during his internship; Annelys Devet facilitated, edited and connected, and Julia Mrad was the driving force of the solidarity events we co-organised in Brussels. Elettra Bisogno generously volunteered in putting together an incredible amount of videos, showcasing the production and sharing the stories behind the Awakening goggles, ‘I am an Arab’ t-shirt, Freedom Shoes, Unveiled Souls, Made in Palestine, and this one Gaza Earrings, Love for Live:

And as the evolution of the pandemic allowed for activities in public again, we co-organised and were involved in several solidarity events, and webbed our networks outwards for presentation and distribution of the design platform. The Identity=Health facemask was officially acquired by the V&A in London, and we were involved in the following happenings:

  • Palestine-solidarity event ‘Watermelon’,20 June 2021, De Markten, Brussels
    We co-organized the Palestine-solidarity event ‘Watermelon’ together with Lagrange Points Brussels. In many ways, the red, black, green, and white of the watermelon fruit – colours that match those of the Palestinian flag – tell the story of the plight and pride of the Palestinian people throughout generations. We shared stories, designs and narratives along calligrapher and artist Hamza Abu Ayyash, dance group Watan Dabkeh, rapper and musicians Osloob & Abo Gabi. The event ended with a glorious performance by SAWT.
  • SWIDR – PALESTINE AND BEYOND, 20 August 2021, Decoratelier, Brussels
    We participated and co-organised the ‘Palestine & Beyond’ event in Decoratelier. The solidarity night was curated and facilitated by Raghd Azzam, aiming to ‘create an organic energy and connections from Palestine and beyond’. The event was part of Decoratelier’s summer festival SWIDR: Something when it doesn’t rain.
  • ARTIVISM + DIASPORAS / EPISODE 1 : Palestine, 29 October 2021, GlobeAroma, Brussels
    The CNCD-11.11.11 in the framework of its project Soliris.brussels and United Stages Belgium held the first episode of its cycle Artivism + Diasporas, questioning what in means to be in diaspora in a city like Brussels. They turn to the Palestinian diaspora. What does it mean to engage with Palestine from Belgium? Lagrange Points Brussels held a round table with Hamza Abu Ayyash, followed by an evening of dance and music – and Disarming design from Palestine presented designs and stories from our collection.
  • Plant een olijfboom: Exhibition, 7 – 17 November 2021, Sint-Barbara Kerk, Culemborg
    The international solidarity network ‘Plant een olijfboom’ held space for a week-long exhibition of our designs at the Sint-Barbara Kerk in Culemborg, in the Netherlands. The exhibition was opened by Green party and progressive mayor Gerdo van Grootheest. The week followed with a series of events designed to ignite conversations and spark thoughts and solidarity.
  • It’s a Watermelon flag, 23 June – December 2021, Beursschouwburg Brussels
    After ‘It’s a date! (food, conversations, filmscreening)’, carried by the Imtidad collective and artist Samah Hijawi, the Beursschouwburg, a prominent cultural institution in Belgium, kept the Watermelon flags on its building for 2021, in solidarity. And we couldn’t have been more pleased!
  • Brussels, Amsterdam, London
    We are heartened that our expanding networks led our designs to be featured in the rich bookshop of Lagrange Points in Brussels, and the books store of Framer Framed in Amsterdam. And our presence in the museum shop of the amazing museum and cultural center Mosaic Rooms in London continued. Be sure to drop by if you’re around!

 

Along the year, Disarming design from Palestine was featured in a few touching writings.

On the occasion of acquiring the Identity=Health Facemask for the V&A museum, curator Mariam Rosser-Owen wrote Pandemic Objects: Keffiyeh Mask, featuring none other than Mohammad Musallam, artist and designer behind this same mask, and a handful of other designs in our platform. Online magazine SWALFI selected us as one of their 7 most favourite Palestinian artists and collectives to follow; and Etcetera delved into the connections between the Gaza birdhouse, and learning from the pandemic. Artist Jonas Staal wrote an insightful analysis on art, propaganda & solidarity movements in the Netherlands with a focus on the student-organised protests for the liberation of Palestine — featuring the Watermelon flag by Khaled Hourani. And we helped setting up and listened non-stop to the 24-hour online radio broadcast marathon on Palestinian ecology and solidarity by Radioee.net.

Look ahead

We glance back just as we look ahead, and hope the past year will be the fertile soil for the year to come. We hope to invest in more designs, grow our in-person sales,  partner further with (museum)shops, just as much as raising our digital connections and events. This would allow to further web the stories we platform with many others.

For a start, the Sharjah Art Foundation will be featuring our designs in their museum-shop this spring, and we will deepen our collaboration with La Grange Points in Brussels.

And we’re always looking to amplify sibling voices, and to support thought-provoking designs. If so inclined, please do get in touch!

 

In gratitude, always

DDFP team

Identity = health
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Thought-provoking designs
تصاميم لتحفيذ الفكر

Identity = health
الهوية = الصحة

Keffiyeh mask to protect both health and identity

Half a decade before the Covid-19 pandemic، Gaza-born artist Mohammed Musallam created a face mask based on the traditional keffiyeh textile. The conceptual artwork could be seen both as an expression of Palestinian identity and as a means of protection; caring for identity is as important as protecting health itself. It was first used in Gazan hospitals under the Israeli occupation’s siege. Impossible at that time to foresee the impact of Covid-19; this face mask shows the power of artistic imagination. The artwork did not lose any of its meaning; just the contrary.

Gaza’s potentially disastrous combination of widespread impoverishment, densely-packed refugee camps and extremely limited hospital capacity make us even more aware of the catastrophic impact of the Israeli occupation and how fragile life can be. Caring for each other is more important than ever.

Under Musallam’s supervision, the new masks were produced in Gaza City by tailor Abu Alaa Ghaben; to be worn for your safety and as an act of solidarity.

Read review in The Art Newspaper, June 2020

 

Design
  • Mohammed Musallam (PS)

    Mohammed Musallam was born in Gaza in 1974 after his family had been dislocated from the historic Palestine as a consequent of the 1948 war. He holds a PhD in philosophy of Fine Arts, Painting Department, Fine Arts College, Minia University, Egypt. He currently resides in Gaza and works there as a lecturer of “Painting and the History of Palestinian Arts” at the College of Arts, Al Aqsa University. From his first steps as a university student he became greatly influenced by the abstract art processes and approaches. In his Art, he focuses on portraying a range of humanistic issues, which go beyond the limitations imposed by any prevailing time-related matters, which may be oppressive and persistent simultaneously. At the same time, he concentrates on conveying the notion of the preservation of our humaneness amid the harshness of our environment as one of the most important reasons for our existence.

    www.mohammedmusallam.com

Production
  • Abu Alaa Ghaben (Gaza, PS)

    Carpenter living in Gaza City.

  • 2020

    Multi layered face-mask (front side keffiyeh textile, backside white cotton) with elastic straps, washable & reusable

    19 x 9 cm

€13,00

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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
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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?
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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?
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