Sliman Mansour Palestinian, b. 1947

Sliman Mansour (b. 1947, Palestine)

is one of the most distinguished and renowned artists in Palestine. His style embodies steadfastness in the face of a relentless military occupation. His work has come to symbolize the Palestinian national identity and inspired generations of Palestinian and international artists and activists.

Mansour spent his childhood around the verdant hills and fields of Birzeit -where he was born- and later his adolescence in Bethlehem and Jerusalem. These experiences left a significant mark on his work, heightening a sense of gradual loss in Palestine, especially after the occupation of the West Bank and Jerusalem in 1967. His early experiences also presented him with the symbols and images he would later use to preserve and highlight Palestinian

identity.

By using symbols derived from Palestinian life, culture, history, and tradition, Mansour uniquely illustrates Palestinians’ resolve and connection with their land. His pieces epitomize art as a form of resistance.

Sliman Mansour’s art deftly reflects the hopes and realities of a people living under occupation for the better part of a century. Since the early 1970s, he has translated his experiences of isolation, displacement, community, and rootedness using imagery and symbols that have contributed to developing an iconography of the Palestinian struggle.