Fifteen-year-old painter Sara Abu Saade, who lives in a refugee camp in Gaza, said the "paintings of happiness” she created before Israeli attacks have now been replaced by images of destruction, blood and death.
The works of Gaza’s artists shed light on the societal suffering around them. Through their brushes, they strive to give voice to the communities they are part of.
Sara, originally from Beit Lahiya and now living in Gaza City, carries the weight of conveying her people’s experiences to the world despite her young age.
She said that before the Israeli attacks, her paintings depicted the life she and her community once knew, but that changed after the bombings.
Joy turned to sorrow
"I now find that all my paintings are about destruction, blood and martyrs,” Saade said. "All my work reflects a painful reality.”
Inspired by the scenes she witnesses daily, Saade explained that she can no longer create the joyful images she once did.
The young Palestinian artist shared that during times of extreme scarcity, she painted "a woman carrying a sack of flour to the aid distribution point,” and when the Sumud Flotilla set sail, she painted "the ship.” After a cease-fire, she depicted the "return of displaced families to their homes.”
Saade noted that her earlier works were destroyed along with the homes that were bombed. She began painting under harsh conditions, using tents, wood and fabric as canvases and charred wood from fires as paint.
Dreaming of better days
"When I painted the return of families to their homes, I too imagined returning home,” she said, referring to the homes they could not reach in the devastated Yellow Line area.
Saade said everything in her life – her home, her dreams, her mental state and her paintings – is in pieces. Speaking as a young artist, she expressed her hope: "I want to make beautiful paintings again, like before. I don’t want to paint destruction and blood. I want my work to convey our suffering to the world, but unfortunately, the world has turned a blind eye.”
Highlighting her desire to return to her previous hobby, Saade warned that if conditions continue, Gaza may never recover and she may never fulfill her dreams. She added that she hopes to leave Gaza to pursue her ambitions.