Visit to the Palestine History Museum

The visit to the Palestine History Museum connected the history, cultures, people, and arts in ways that I did not except while also introducing me to a world of experiences and part of my world that I did not before.

The visit gave a more concrete explanation of the conflict and topics at hand as explained by Faisal during his introductory talk while showing the importance of art during times like this. I found the clip from the movie Stiching Palestine (I think that was the name) that we got to see was a new perspective on connecting people, their countries’ cultures, art, and conflict while also introducing me to another film that I want to see. The museum itself was a beautiful collection of what was what is, and what could be in Palestine and the world.

The embroidery was beautiful and after knowing the cultural importance from Faisal and the film, it was even more beautiful to look at and know the background of. It was hard to choose what was just one of my favorite or most important elements of the museum. I choose a few sections and parts to mention here. I found the children’s art therapy wall astonishing and jaw-dropping for the amount of knowledge and experience at just a young age along with how they summed up the whole war in simple drawings and occasional words in Arabic (I’m guessing). I also found the murals, the photos of the city, and the text write-ups informative and inspiring.

It showed how something seemingly small like street art could be bigger and have an importance globally and locally. The write-ups showed people’s perspectives and why it was all important. I also found the abstract impressionist-like black and white art of the bombings/skyline equally wonderful and terrifying.

This is because the whole situation like its cultures could be felt through the art of its people and that is a good description of the museum: artistic simplicity cloaking a complex struggle and war.