ARTIST NOTE

This Gallery practice was designed to deliver a dismantled and reconstructed narrative of Palestinian pottery to the audience through physical exhibition space. This practice was based on the sub-research question “How to reconstruct and deliver the narrative of intangible heritage hidden by colonial agents to the audiences?” Gallery Through: Exhibition is based on David Lowenthal’s theory of preservation, which states that heritage is an important means of strengthening the community’s identity and collective memory and maintaining narrative continuity of the past, present, and future. Through this, Palestinian pottery are not just physical artifacts, but the artifacts which have intangible narrative allowing them to interact with the audience and achieve narrative liberation. 

The gallery’s spatial background is the Jericho region of the West Bank, Palestine and the Jordan Valley. The Jordan Valley, an iconic space closely connected with the daily lives of Palestinians, served as a source of water and a center of cultural interaction. However, after occupation, Palestinian access to the area was restricted, which also cut off narrative and historical continuity. Gallery Through: Exhibition therefore, aims to restore marginalized Palestinian historical narratives from an imaginary level and, by interacting with audiences, liberate historical and cultural continuity that is disconnected from space through objects.