An interesting exhibition was supported by Hastings in The Stade open space, near the sea and fishing boats, Oh Big Blue. It was a wonderful experience of poetry and illustrations by children from across Palestine. In 2024 the Hands Up Project held a competition for children between 9 – 17 and published a book. The poems shown in this exhibition were put together with illustrations into the second book called Oh Big Blue. They are a collection of the initial competition with a forward from Alice and Peter Oswald, both poets. The Hands up Project is a British educational charity.
The children who wrote and illustrated their poems came from Jerusalem, Nablas, Gaza, Jenin, Ramallah and Hebron. Author and competition judge Max Porter, who also organised this exhibition, said: “Reading these poems was like walking in a spectacular light show made of feeling. The courage, hope and pride in these poems is an antidote to the poisons of this world. They amount to a genuine miracle of the human spirit.”
We hear and see what children go through in Palestine, their suffering, but only through the lens of adult reporters and pictures on TV, we don’t get to hear often about their resilience. This is shown very much in the poems and illustrations, written and drawn under constant bombardment.
Everyone involved in this project was proud to have supported the four-day exhibition in Hastings Stade space. They wanted young people and adults to gain an insight into the realities of the life for children in Palestine, yet in the poems there is not only darkness but much hope that life will change for them. The book can be ordered here.
“Oh great sea, oh big blue, take my dreams and bring me hope, sing to that child so he can forget his hunger, play with that girl that missed her mother, Don’t leave them stay and heal them – Oh great sea oh big blue take their pain and give them hope”. (13-year-old Joud R Isleem, Gaza).
Image Credits: Heidi Foster .