   
UK Exhibition tour: photographs by Palestinian university students
Friends of Birzeit University, London, 30 January 2007
In 2005, student photographers from Birzeit University and Al-Najah University in the West Bank came together to document student life and the obstruction of Palestinian education under military occupation, through the artistic expression of their own ideas and experiences. Their photographs have now become an exhibition and a book, launched at Birzeit University in 2006 and currently touring Palestine and the US. Friends of Birzeit University and Foyles will host the first UK view of the exhibition at Foyles' landmark Charing Cross bookshop.
"In the world of photographs, when the camera becomes your eyes and your beating heart, the photograph that you take will not be a single moment in your memories, but will be the complete reality and the complete story... It is not just about art photography, it is a moment in history; it is a moment in our time as Palestinian students that tells the world our truth." Fadwa Basha, student photographer
As well as capturing the major obstacles to pursuing an education in the occupied West Bank - obstacles which include the routine harassment and arrests of students by Israeli soldiers and the daily struggle to reach school and university under a regime of military checkpoints - the photographers have also reflected on the less visual aspects of student life under occupation. The photographs in the exhibition and book touch on themes as diverse as isolation, poverty, resistance, absent classmates, military barriers, student prisoners and determination.
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| On the first day of school, waiting at Azun Atmeh checkpoint, Qalqiliya, September 2005 (Muthanna Al-Qadi) |
The exhibition will promote and elevate Palestinian student voices and expression in the UK and document the issues facing Palestinian students and education under occupation in a striking and challenging form. The exhibition opens in London at:
The Gallery
Foyles Bookshop
113-119 Charing Cross Road
London WC2H 0EB
Monday 29th January to Sunday 4th February 2007
Opening times: Monday-Saturday 9.30am-9.00pm, Sunday 12.00-6.00pm
FoBZU is organising a tour of universities, conferences and other locations throughout the UK. Priority booking is available to affiliates of Birzeit University and Friends of Birzeit University. To see some photos of the exhibition please visit http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article4532.shtml.
For more information about the UK tour, please contact:
Dan Richards
Coordinator
Friends of Birzeit University
1 Gough Square
London EC4A 3DE
Tel: 020 7832 1340
Fax: 020 7832 1349
Email: fobzu@fobzu.org
Web: www.fobzu.org
Supporting education at Palestine's leading university since 1978 Registered Charity Number 1114343, Company Number 5713430.
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