Palestine | Naima Morelli

Published! Interview with Suha Araj for MEMO

22-03-2021

“For me, there is always a visceral element to how I create,” tells me Suha Araj from her home in Brooklyn. “That’s why I’m always drawn to the stories of the Diaspora, because that’s where I have the most emotion. I’m interested in how people survive, and the clashes of living between two cultures.”

My interview with Palestinian-American director Suha Araj has just been published on Middle East Monitor. It was a wonderful conversation that opened up to me new learning not only about Arab cinema, but also about how one becomes a director.

Here is the link to the interview

Published! Interview with Hind Shoufani for Middle East Monitor

By: Naima Morelli

17-12-2020

English, Interview, Middle East, News

Artist, director and poet Hind Shoufani insists that her Palestinian-ness is a political act. “It is a choice to be on this side of history,” she tells me, “whether we triumph or not, whether I carry some piece of identification paper with blue colours on it, or green colours on it, or rainbow glitter tie-dye on it.”

Middle East Monitor has just published my interview with Hind Shoufani.

Here is the link to the interview

Published! Interview with Steve Sabella on Middle East Monitor

By: Naima Morelli

06-04-2020

English, Interview, Middle East

For multimedia artist Steve Sabella, these hard times require us to access the potential of our imagination in order to conjure up our collective future. His works of art reflecting the hardships of the Palestinians become universal metaphors for global rebirth.

My interview with Berlin-based Palestinian artist Steve Sabella has just been published on Middle East Monitor.

Here is the link to the interview

Published! Interview with Pal Museum director Adila Laïdi Hanieh

By: Naima Morelli

27-06-2019

English, Interview, Middle East, Published, Research

PalestinianMuseum
I might be repeating myself, but even a short piece of writing – meant to announce the publication of a new piece – is an opportunity to speak about the true wonder of this job. The knowledge, hope and excitement that it brings. Every conversation is a gift, every piece published a way to let all this interestingness out, to feel part of those bringing light and understanding to our human society.

Anyway, this interview with Palestinian Museum director Dr Adila Laïdi Hanieh, adds up to my research on art and culture in Palestine, I have been started researching since I wrote my first few articles for the excellent web magazine Middle East Monitor. The conversation with such an elegant personality, whose direction is bringing harmony and rationalisation to the Palestinian Museum, was truly inspiring.

Here is the link to the interview

Published: Laila Shawa on Middle East Monitor

By: Naima Morelli

03-04-2019

English, Essay, Middle East, Published, Research

LailaShawa
Lend your pen to what’s important, my friend. Life is beautiful when you use what has been given to you – in my case this passion for writing – to share with others what inspires you and makes you – and others – feel that tingling of excitement.

So a lot has been written already about Islamo-Pop Palestinian artist Laila Shawa. However I wanted to measure myself with the work of this artist too, and learn about about her incredible life. And I did it for Middle East Monitor, some of the kindest people devoting themselves to the socio-political realm.

Here is the link to the article

Published! Interview with Rana Samara on Middle East Monitor

By: Naima Morelli

18-12-2017

English, Interview, Middle East, Published

RanaSamara

I have interviewed Palestinian artist Rana Samara for Middle East Monitor. Rana is a highly inquisitive, courageous and determined woman. These characteristics propelled her to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Fine Art as a mother of three children from a conservative background. Her passion for art has led her to a two-year MA in Fine Art at Northwestern University, Chicago.

The backbone of Rana’s work are conversations with women about gender and intimate relations. Her latest series of work called “Intimate Space”, was presented by Ramallah’s at Art Dubai 2017 and put the spotlight on the depth and complexity of the research of Palestinian artist.

Here is the link to the interview

Published! Bait al Karama on Middle East Monitor

By: Naima Morelli

31-10-2017

English, Interview, Middle East, News, Published

BaitAlKarama

The webmagazine Middle East Monitor has just published my article called: Palestine’s first female-run cookery school is ‘a labour of love’. The piece is based on an interview with artist Beatrice Catanzaro about the Bait Al Karama, the first Women’s Centre in the heart of the Old City of Nablus, which combines a culinary social enterprise with art and cultural activities.

The space was established to support the social and economic needs of women in the Old City struggling in the aftermath of the occupation, and to draw international attention to Nablus as a place of art and culture.

Here is the link to the piece

Published! Banksy’s hotel on Middle East Monitor

By: Naima Morelli

28-04-2017

English, Essay, Middle East, Published

banksyhotel

The webmagazine Middle East Monitor has just published my article on the controversial Walled Off Hotel by graffiti artist Banksy with the title: “Playing with sand in a sandstorm: Palestinians on Banksy’s Walled Off Hotel”. I gathered a few opinions on the subject, by three Palestinians involved in different way with art and an art blogger, then drew my conclusions:

“Banksy’s hotel provides us with the opportunity to reflect on the role of art in sensitive contexts, such as the situation in occupied Palestine. What art needs is not to be more witty or ironic. It should neither become didactic nor necessarily take sides. Artists need to have a heart and some empathy; a capacity and willingness to listen. In order to do that, though, they need to break out from the cage that is their own narcissism. This won’t make the art necessarily cooler, but it would make it more meaningful. More human, in fact.”

Here is the link to the piece

Interview with Khalil Rabah for Middle East Monitor

By: Naima Morelli

27-12-2016

English, Interview, Middle East, Published

khalilrabah1

It should written of the information leaflet, like the one you find in medicine boxes: long term exposure to contemporary art changes your way of thinking. It gives you a complexity of thinking and variety of perspective on issues, which is extremely important. For example, the work of Palestinian artists Khalil Rabah – especially his “Palestinian Museum of Natural History and Humankind” is one that urges people re-consider reality in other terms – especially because here the boundaries between artwork and actual history-making institution are really thin. It was a privilege to have the chance to interview him for Middle East Monitor, after having seen his work at MACRO Museum in Rome.

Here’s the link to the interview

Published! Randa Maddah on Memo

By: Naima Morelli

14-10-2016

English, Middle East, Published, Review

memorandamaddah

Middle East Monitor has just published my article about Syrian artist Randa Maddah, whose work has recently been presented in the exhibition “A Hair Tie” at Gallery One in Ramallah, Palestine.

Here’s the link to the article

Published! Palestinian hip-hop on Middle East Monitor

By: Naima Morelli

23-02-2016

English, Essay, Interview, Middle East, Published

memopalestinehiphop

My piece “New documentary puts Palestinian hip-hop in the spotlight” has just been published on the webmagazine Middle East Monitor. In this article I interview Giulia Giorgi, director of the documentary “Break the Siege” (Baburka Productions).

This uplifting 20-minute film gives an insight into the Palestinian hip-hop scene. The storyline follows preparations for the “Hip-Hop Smash the Wall” event which took place over the course of one week in Ramallah and Jerusalem in 2014 and brought together hip-hop artists from Palestine and Italy. In the piece I also spoke with Roman graffiti artist Gojo, who tells about his impressions of the hip-hop scene in Ramallah.

Here’s the link to the piece

Naima Morelli

Published! Interview with Suha Araj for MEMO

Published! Interview with Hind Shoufani for Middle East Monitor

Published! Interview with Steve Sabella on Middle East Monitor

Published! Interview with Pal Museum director Adila Laïdi Hanieh

Published: Laila Shawa on Middle East Monitor

Published! Interview with Rana Samara on Middle East Monitor

Published! Bait al Karama on Middle East Monitor

Published! Banksy’s hotel on Middle East Monitor

Interview with Khalil Rabah for Middle East Monitor

Published! Randa Maddah on Memo

Published! Palestinian hip-hop on Middle East Monitor

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