This poster was designed by Palestinian Jerusalemite artist Samia Halaby (see Samia Halaby) for the exhibition “Jerusalem, Lexicon of Colours,” at the Palestinian Art Court—al-Hoash (see The Palestinian Art Court—al-Hoash: Connecting Palestinian Artists with the World) in Jerusalem’s Old City. The design merges Halaby’s signature abstract geometry with Arabic calligraphy, celebrating Jerusalem as the capital of Arab culture.
The exhibit showcased the work of eight pioneering Palestinian artists using various themes, styles, and mediums. These artists were Kamal Boullata (see Kamal Boullata), Samia Halaby, Sophie Halaby (see Sophie Halaby), Jumana El Husseni (see Jumana El-Husseini), Sliman Mansour (see Sliman Mansour), Taysir Sharaf, Vera Tamari, Vladimir Tamari, and Daoud Zalatimo. It was al-Hoash’s first program in celebration of Jerusalem—Capital of Arab Culture 2009. It also celebrated the grand opening of al-Hoash’s new gallery location in Jerusalem’s Old City.
The gallery offered this description, in part, of the exhibition’s purpose and theme: “Jerusalem, a lexicon of colours, is an exhibition that brings together 8 pioneering Palestinian artists who over decades have been paintingJerusalem in a wide array of rich representations, using various themes, styles, and mediums. Their art reflected their relation with the city, their impressions, memories, images and recollections before its occupation in 1967 and later until the eighties of the past century.”1
The exhibition ran from March 12 to April 25, 2009. It was sponsored by the Arab Fund for Arts & Culture and produced by Palestinian Art Court—al Hoash in cooperation with the Ethnographic and Art Museum at Birzeit University and the International Academy of Arts—Palestine. It was co-curated by Vera Tamari and Tina Sherwell.
For more work by Samia Halaby, see The Artistic Oeuvre of Samia Halaby and The Artistic Oeuvre of Samia Halaby—Digital Art. See also From Jerusalem to Oslo: Samia Halaby Wins the 2025 MUNCH Award for Artistic Freedom.