A. M. Qattan Foundation Opens Elegiac Whispers: Lines on Grief in Ramallah
Part of the Foundation’s project exploring the elusive nature of Arab grief and the aesthetics of its expression
The A. M. Qattan Foundation announces the opening of Elegiac Whispers: Lines on Grief at its Ramallah premises. The exhibition offers a new visual encounter with grief through selected lines of modern and contemporary Arabic poetry, brought to life by lettering artists from across the Arab world and its diasporas
, including artists from Palestine. Through their works, these artists give poetic verses experimental visual forms that uncover the expressive capacities of Arabic—verbal, aesthetic, and affective—at a moment when the language itself is facing a gradual, lamentable withdrawal in daily use.
Conceived as both a tribute to Arabic and a reflection on its ability to carry emotional and intellectual depth, the exhibition affirms the language’s enduring role in registering human experience, encoding sentiment, and shaping collective imagination. It also stands as a prelude to the Foundation’s multifaceted project Elegiac Whispers (Spring 2026), which explores the elusive character of Arab grief and the culturally specific ways communities express, negotiate, and transform experiences of loss.
Within the galleries, the lines written by Arab poets meet lines drawn by artists of lettering and design. The exhibition invites visitors to contemplate the conceptual, emotive, and metaphorical dimensions of poetry, as well as the additional layers of meaning—often overlooked—that the script alone evokes. In Arabic, shiʿr (poetry) extends beyond rhythmic and stylistic structure; historically, it denotes knowledge and insight, with the shaʿir (poet) regarded as an inspired figure capable of perceiving what lies beneath the surface. This meeting between written word and drawn script creates a shared space where aesthetic and intellectual tools converge, allowing grief to emerge as presence and form rather than absence or conclusion.
Artists
Abdulrahman Hashlamon, Eman Fikri, Ethar Elaagib, Farah Fayyad, Ghalia Elsrakbi, Hala Al‑Ani, Haneen Nazzal, Khawlah Alshaibani, Kinda Ghannoum, Mahmoud Abdelghany, Mohammed Ameer, Muharam Hassan, Muiz, Nassim Azarzar, Nour Zahabi, Mohammed Tatour, Tawfiq Dawi, Walid Bouchouchi, Yehia Moldan, Zeina Ahmad Taha.
Curated by Amin Alsaden
Information
Venue: A. M. Qattan Foundation, Ramallah
Opening: 19 January 2026
Press & inquiries: Media@qattanfoundation.org
Project Background—Elegiac Whispers (Spring 2026)
The project holds space for grief and examines communal mourning beyond formulaic condolences, familiar rituals, and stereotypical imagery. Expressing sorrow is neither surrender nor defeat; it counters apathy and the denial of pain while affirming the right to mark profound loss—of human lives, homelands, intimacy, language, and ancestral practices. Deeply anchored in Arab cultural specificity and literary devices—such as the elegiac mode (al‑rithāʾ) and the motif of al‑wuqūf ʿalā al‑aṭlāl—the project comprises an exhibition (with invited and selected participants), site‑specific installations, a publication, public programs, and regional partnerships.