Death of Sliman Mansour, a leading figure in Palestinian art, at age 79

Palestinian painter and sculptor Sliman Mansour died on Monday, August 24, at the age of 79 in his home in East Jerusalem, his family announced. For decades, the artist depicted Palestinian traditions, the attachment to the land, and the consequences of the Israeli occupation. His work helped shape a visual memory that has become inseparable from Palestinian national identity.

Born in 1947 in Birzeit, north of Ramallah, Sliman Mansour studied art and design in Jerusalem before graduating in 1970. His career developed around themes such as exile, resistance, transmission, and resilience. His paintings and sculptures have transcended the artistic realm to become vehicles of collective memory for several generations of Palestinians.

"The Camel of Burdens," a work that has become emblematic

Created in 1973, his most famous painting, Camel of Hardships, depicts an elderly Palestinian man carrying the city of Jerusalem on his back. This image has become one of the most recognizable representations of the suffering and resilience of the Palestinian people. The Palestinian Ministry of Culture honored him by describing the work as a "national and artistic icon."

The Zawyeh Gallery in Ramallah paid tribute to a major figure whose work expressed the Palestinians' connection to their homeland. Awarded the UNESCO-Sharjah Prize for Arab Culture in 2019, Sliman Mansour leaves behind a body of work that is political, historical, and profoundly human. His passing deprives Palestinian contemporary art of one of its leading figures, but his creations will continue to embody a part of his people's history and memory.