War lines blur and sleep into every field, even the arts
In a heartbreaking turn of events, a Palestinian photojournalist, 25 year old Fatima Hasouna who was living in Gaza, got killed in an Israeli airstrike amid ongoing violence; along with 10 relatives, including her pregnant sister. Dedicating the past year and a half to documenting violence, the demolition of her home and displacement and murder of her 11 family members, her demand was that her life would not end quietly.
Hasouna was featured Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk, a film set to premiere at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, a breakthrough made a mere 24 hours before Hasouna’s life was taken from her. Directed and created by Sepideh Farsi, it tells the story of Gaza’s ordeal documentary style. During interviews with France 24 and Deadline, Farsi reflects on their collaboration.
“My eyes in Gaza … fiery and full of life. I filmed her laughs, her tears, her hopes and her depression. She was such a light, so talented. When you see the film you’ll understand”.
A month before her death, Oscar winning Palestinian director Hamdan Ballal was attacked and detained by Israeli forces. Ballal uses the art of his films to challenge the narrative that portrays Palestians through a lens of terrorism and victimhood, rather than acknowledging their humanity. Ballal was attacked and detained by Israeli forces on March 24, this triggered global demand for his release, which was issued a day later. Despite the harrowing occurrence, he continues to speak out. In his opinion essay for the New York Times titled, “My Oscar from ‘No Other Land’ Didn’t Protect Me From Violence”, he reflects on the intensity of his detainment.
“I am a film maker. I document injustice, and now I have lived it in my own flesh.”
The effects of the war bleed beyond cinema and journalism, it has seeped into the fashion industry as well. Morals and creative pursuits collide in many ways in the fashion world. Bella Hadid, the Palestinian-American supermodel has been using her platform to advocate for Palestinians and voice her opinion on the war in Gaza. Despite her undeniable influence, Hadid faced professional setbacks in support for her homeland. This included being removed from high profile campaigns from brands such as Adidas and being absent from substantial runways. Despite the backlash, Hadid remains firm on her word.
“I’ll always be a proud Palestinian,” she says.
The impact of the war in Gaza didn’t only affect Palestinian models, with designers like Palestinian-British Fadi Kazem Sarandah also disrupting the fashion week process to spread awareness of hardships that fellow Palestinians experience. Sarandah withdrew his collection from London Fashion Week in protest and to counteract the silence of the industry. The withdrawal shouldn’t be viewed as only as a political statement, but as an uncomfortable truth of how the war is forcing creatives across all fields to side against their art, or moral responsibility.
It is evident that violent military conflicts will almost never stay within the designated lines of war. The pain seeps into the arts, media and fashion, which are the very industries that express the human experience. The death of Fatima Hassouna and detainment of Hamdan Ballal are not singular incidents, they are now woven into the vast pattern where artists of all kinds have to choose between a job, autonomy and safety. Work in the art world is almost never solely about creative expression, it plays a huge role in documenting history. War doesn’t only take lives, it harms the preservation of stories. Concerning Palestine, where voices have been attempted to be silenced for a long time, the loss of journalists, filmmakers and artists is forever heartbreaking.