This talk explores the dynamic interplay between Palestine's cultural-artistic scene and urban grassroots movements. Delving into historical Palestinian cities, it unravels the symbiotic relationship between art, culture, and grassroots activism, highlighting creative expressions as dynamic tools for resilience and resistance. The seminar sheds light on collaborative projects challenging prevailing narratives, emphasizing the indispensable role of cultural expressions in the 48Palestinian pursuit of autonomy and self-determination. Examining the conditions fostering the ascent of the 48Palestinians' cultural scene, the talk will observe how these artists navigate Israeli urban constraints. Understanding their pivotal role in shaping a shared Palestinian sensory experience and influencing the political meanings and imagination of Palestine's future, this talk critically evaluates the potential and limitations of the cultural scene in envisioning an emancipatory, liberatory, and decolonial future for Palestine and beyond.
Himmat Zoubi is a Palestinian researcher and feminist activist. She received her PhD in Sociology from Ben-Gurion University and holds two Master's degrees, one in Criminology and another in Gender Studies. Her work focuses on cities and urbanization in colonial context. She published several book chapters and articles on, settler colonialism cities, settler colonial cultural cities, on Palestinian feminist movement, and indigenous knowledge and resistance. Zoubi was a EUME Fellow during the academic years 2018-21. In 2021/22 she was a postdoctoral fellow of the International Research Group on Authoritarianism and Counter-Strategies (IRGAC) at Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung, associated with The Center for Middle Eastern and North African Studies at the Freie Universität, Berlin and EUME. In the academic years 2022-24, she remains a EUME Fellow.
Hanan Toukan is Professor of Middle East Studies in the Politics and Ethics Program at Bard College Berlin. She is author of "The Politics of Art: Dissent and Cultural Diplomacy in Lebanon, Palestine and Jordan" published with Stanford University Press in 2021. She is also a contributing editor at Jerusalem Quarterly and a member of the editorial Collective of Journal for Visual Culture. She is also currently serving on the Board of Directors of the Palestinian Museum in Ramallah. Hanan Toukan has been a EUME Fellow in the academic years 2012-14, and again with a scholarship from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation from 2019-23.
