Hind Khoudary // Bullets and Shrapnel: Meet the Gaza artist turning weapons into art | Middle East Eye

26.5.18

Bullets and Shrapnel: Meet the Gaza artist turning weapons into art | Middle East Eye: The idea of commemorating the protests came to Abu Taqqeyeh after his own brother was shot in the leg. His 19-year-old brother was 700 metres away from the fence lining the border on the first day of the Great March of Return and was injured with live ammunition in both legs. The nerves in his right leg were completely damaged and shrapnel from the bullet remains lodged in his right leg; he is still unable to walk and is undergoing treatment.

Abu Taqqeyeh took the bullet extracted from his brother’s leg from the doctor and sculptured it into a miniature Canaanite soldier.

“Canaanites are our ancestors. They were the first people who came to Palestine. The figure of the Canaanite soldier demonstrates that we have the right to live on this land,” he says.

The Canaanites inhabited the Levant region, including ancient Palestine, thousands of years ago and were believed to have been wiped out by the Israelites according to Old Testament scripture. However, a recent genetic study suggested that the ancient population survived, and their descendants live in modern Lebanon.

“I transformed these violent weapons into peaceful handmade figurines and miniature installations,” he says.