"We shall play again" by Zaid Shawwa
Current exhibition
Going back to the innocence of childhood is a big challenge, but the essence of this project was to reconnect with the simplicity and profound nature of children. To think as they think and express as they do. It was not an easy task, particularly when the subject of this project is the children of Gaza. For over a year, we have witnessed their lives, memorizing some of their faces and names, seeking them daily on social media, hoping to find them still alive.
This journey has been extraordinary, a pilgrimage back to the spirit of a child. A stream of emotions washed over me as I engaged with this endeavor; fleeting moments of joy filled me with familiar feelings from my childhood. Feelings like the thrill of a new experience or the sweet success of an adventure. Yet, each time excitement propelled me deeper into the realm of play, I would be reminded that this project was for the suffering children of Gaza, sweeping me back into adulthood, as a father burdened with fear for the people, their homeland, and their future.
In the final stages of the project, when I stood in my studio surrounded by all the works, it felt as if I were, as Ibn Al-Rumi said, "far yet close, close yet far." How can I alleviate their pain or change their reality?
But still, there is no escape from showing this work, hoping it may serve as documentation, conveying a reality we all witnessed, one that was filled with aching injustice.
In realizing these works, I embraced wood as my primary material. The choice was instinctive, perhaps logical, as wood is of earthly origin, a testament to our bond with the land, or maybe it is a living entity that has a spirit echoing the choices children might make.
I find no clear explanation, but I am certain that no other medium could have conveyed these sentiments the way I felt them.
The colors used in this project were limited to the primary colors: red, yellow, and blue, in addition to black and white. I found no room for color luxury, and I don't think a child cares much about any color other than red, perhaps blue and yellow too.
It was exhilarating to work solely with these fundamental hues, and although I often gravitate towards primary colors in my creations, finding beauty in their abstraction, in this particular experience, their resonance struck a different chord within my soul. I dove into the challenge of orchestrating these colors, finding their rightful places in the composition. With time, I became akin to a child with a limited selection of toys, inventing new games to entertain himself each day.
A wondrous simplicity reigns in the world of children, mixed with creativity. How beautiful childhood is... If only we could preserve that state of wonder, if only we could remain forever children, knowing the world through a handful of toys, primary colors, and a wooden horse.
"We Shall Play Again" is more than an art project, it is a hopeful promise to the kids of Gaza that their lives will be restored and that the joy of play will find its way back to them.
