Steadfastness of Gaza

Translation / Interpretation / Caption Text

Arabic text:

Support the steadfastness of Gaza

English text:

Support the heroic struggle of the Palestinian people in Gaza against Israeli repression

French text:

Support the struggle of the Palestinian people in Gaze against the Zionist occupation

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Analysis / Interpretation / Press / Source

"However, the desire to enrich content by adding various symbols has led sometimes to the use of literary texts. This is obvious in one of the best posters designed by Ghassan Kanafani that carries the slogan: "Support the Steadfastness of Gaza" (1970). In it, the author uses his rich literary imagination to create a metaphoric image for the struggle for freedom. Out of the area representing the Gaza Strip a giant tree grows upwards where its leafless branches are twisted as if they are singing the words of the slogan calling for support (i.e. calling the buds to blossom and the leaves to grow-a metaphor for Palestinians to take up the struggle). The artist expresses the idea that a great revolution was taking place in the Gaza Strip in those days through the image of an ordinary man standing beside a tree and raising his gun upwards. Coloring the Gaza Strip in red on a black map, the artist not only refers to the sun – the symbol of liberty at the top of the poster – but symbolically refers to the sacrifice needed for victory."

Source: The Palestinian Poster, by Shafiq Radwan