Mohammed Alhaj
Born: 1982 Nationality: Palestinian Current Residence: Al-Nuseirat Refugee Camp, Central Gaza Strip Mohammad Al-Haj is a Palestinian artist and refugee. His family was forcibly displaced in 1948 from the village of Kawkaba, in the Gaza District, and sought refuge in Al-Nuseirat Refugee Camp in the central Gaza Strip. He graduated in 2004 from Al-Aqsa University, Faculty of Fine Arts, with a specialization in Art Education. He worked as an art teacher at a secondary school in Gaza City. Between 2005 and 2008, he was a founding member of the Palestinian Artists Association in the central Gaza Strip, and he is also a member of Paleta Group for Contemporary Art. He lived and worked in Gaza City until October 7, 2023, when his home and private studio were completely destroyed during the latest war, forcing him to flee. He currently resides in Al-Nuseirat Refugee Camp. ARTISTIC PRACTICE His practice spans abstraction, symbolic expressionism, pop art, and realism. His work explores the spatial and temporal relationship between humans and land, addressing displacement since the Nakba of 1948 and the preservation of identity.
Media interviews
Venice International Biennale
In 2022, Al-Hajj participated in the 59th Venice Biennale under the title "From Palestine with Art," alongside 19 other prominent Palestinian artists, within the first official Palestinian Pavilion—a moment considered a landmark in the history of Palestinian art. Two years later, amidst the 2024 war on Gaza, he was invited to present a new artwork for the 60th Venice Biennale within the Palestinian Pavilion. However, his proposed work was completely destroyed when his studio was burned down by artillery and airstrikes, resulting in the loss of more than two decades of his artistic output. Furthermore, the Biennale's management rejected the Palestinian Pavilion under external pressure demanding its absence from the 2024 Biennale. Despite this, the exhibition was organized independently, and Al-Hajj participated with a print of his proposed work alongside a collection of drawings he had created during his displacement amidst the war on Gaza.
Gaza International Biennale - Abu Al-Kuffiyeh
His latest project, Abu Al-Kufiya (2025), consists of twenty-four drawings that constitute a visual testimony to fragmentation and identity through symbolic and expressive images rooted in the current reality of Gaza. The project raises questions about the persistence of Palestinian displacement, the experience of marginalization and rejection globally, and the uncertain fate facing Palestinians after decades of repeated catastrophes.
Artistic participation in several countries
Despite the destruction, closures, and travel bans, Al-Hajj independently participated with printed copies of his artwork in numerous exhibitions in several world capitals, along with a series of drawings he completed during the displacement in Gaza.
