Watermelon Flag

The Story of the Watermelon

Following the ‘67 war, when the Palestinian flag was banned, slices of watermelon became a stand-in symbol of resistance to apartheid and the violence of occupation

In the seventies when the Palestinian flag was a Forbidden and an accusation. The Israeli officer told a group of artists, Nabil Anani, Sliman Mansour, and Isam Bader it is forbidden to draw national symbols such as the colors of the Palestinian flag. Then one of the artists said, but what about drawing a rose with the colors of the flag? red, green, black and white colors. So, the officer clarifies, It is forbidden even to draw a watermelon .

The false accusation may have ended, but the occupation has not Hourani borrowed from this officer the idea for this artistic project, not to admire his ill imagination, but to commemorate his prohibition and produced the Watermelon flag for the subjective Atlas of Palestine Project in 2007. And then in many exhibitions around the world.