They even Stole the Rainbow: New Stamp by Khaled Jarrar
The occupation of Palestine continues
– and so does our resistance
“What art can do for real politics” is an ongoing interactive art collaboration by Khaled Jarrar and InEnArt. Against the new annexation plans, a third round of distributing stamps for the State of Palestine is opened up.
If you wish to participate in this round, the new design is ready to be ordered as of now. Additionally, read below how the team has set-up a new payment system that allows for individual contributions to the artist’s work.
They Even Stole The Rainbow
I live in a large outdoor prison, whose walls are daily closing in. Anger grows inside of me as the Israeli occupation expropriates lands at an accelerated pace, robbing freedom en masse. In designing this stamp I reject annexation, this dark reality, conveying instead an angry message of love for all that is beautiful — and the mind —that can never be occupied.
In this stamp, the tiny Palestinian sunbird drinks nectar from the jasmine rose, spreading its pollen and fragrance every morning and evening, as if it were the stamp that will be in your hands. Paste it on your messages, send them around the world, tell the story of the native bird struggling for freedom. The word “Palestine,” in Hebrew, English, and Arabic, rejects racism in all its forms and stands against the annexation.
Khaled Jarrar, 2020
A documentary on the core idea of the project aired on Al-Jazeera in May 2020 raised awareness for the project again. Inspired by the following requests for participation from all over the world, Khaled Jarrar designed a new stamp that explicitly addresses the current situation.
The new stamp is different to the previous designs which pleased the eye and depicted the Palestine Sunbird and the Anemone Shaqiqat Al Nu’man. We want you to look at it, understand how it makes you feel and in which ways it challenges your aesthetics and expectations towards art and/or a stamp.
For now, we are leaving the new design uncommented. In a second step, we will be publishing a commentary to explain the rationale and provide some context as we did with the first and second design.
How to participate
If you wish to participate, you can order a sheet of postage stamps which are also a collector’s item and an interactive peace of art for EUR 25*.
If you additionally want to support Jarrar’s work and projects on the ground, please select the + Support option in the drop-down menu**.
**On the costs
Previously, the costs of participating in the art project covered the printing and shipping costs of the stamps. A monetary imbursement for the artist’s work or other projects that are resisting the occupation on the ground were not possible. To change this, we have decided to adjust the payment system as such that contributions are flexible now: If one can and wants to give more than the costs of printing and shipping (EUR 25), this option is provided now. If one cannot or does not want to give more everything stays as it is and you still receive the stamps.
We will update the amount of stamps that have been ordered as well as the amount of money that was raised additionally and what will be done with it.