PALESTINIAN artists wishing to celebrate the choice of Jerusalem as Capital of Arab Culture in 2009 by the Arab League have drawn a painting paying homage to the city's Arab culture and current Palestinian suffering. The painting, entitled ‘For Jerusalem', is displayed on the steps of the Damascus Gate, one of the gates leading into Jerusalem's Old City. It was drawn by eight Jerusalem-based artists and an artist from the occupied Golan Heights who wanted to highlight Jerusalem's Arab cultural heritage and the plight Palestinians currently face because of Israel's travel restrictions to the Holy City and Israeli settlement expansion. Rawan Abu Ghosh, the organiser of the painting project, said, “As a group of young people from Jerusalem, we came up with this idea as a way of expressing ourselves, especially as people living under occupation and without most freedoms. All that we can protect is our culture and heritage. So a group of artists created a painting which is two metres high by two metres wide, which could be the largest painting we have.” Mutaz Abed Rabbo, one of the artists working on the painting, said, “I painted the Dome of the Rock, which is one of the symbols of Jerusalem. I have to paint the Dome of the Rock wherever I go. I also painted a dove, half of it in white and the other half in red to show that the peace process has failed. All the green at the bottom (of the painting) represents the greenery and trees of Jerusalem. This painting explores themes of exile, peace and war. All these themes can be found in one message (painting).” Hassan Jadda, another of the artists to work on the painting said: “It is a painting, a work of art that expresses our love for this city and the beauty of this city. It's done in a simple and beautiful way. A number of artists collaborated on it.” The painting was funded by the Alexandria Library in Jerusalem, and has been finished in time to be displayed at the Damascus Gate during the holy month of Ramadan. Another painting was created by Palestinian children was set up on the steps of the Damascus Gate. The paintings will stay in their current location until the end of the year 2009. The Arab League declared Jerusalem the Arab Cultural Capital for 2009, under a scheme inspired by the UNESCO Capital of Cultural programme. Damascus is Arab Capital of Culture during 2008.
