Gazan takes a shot at peace

This Palestinian man uses bullets shot by Israeli occupation forces in to the Gaza Strip to highlight Palestine's longing for peace

by Mohammed Asad

Majdy Abu Tagiyya is a sculptor, but the materials he uses for his art are unique to Gaza, they are the bullets shot by Israeli occupation forces to target peaceful Palestinian protesters.

“I like to send a message to peace to the world,” Majdy says, “that the People of Gaza are not terrorists … that we are people who love life.”

The thirty-year-old collects his materials from the field or from doctors follow Israeli attacks on the besieged enclave and uses them to make small sculptures including of essential items in Middle Eastern household, a sheesha pipe, a portable gas cooker and pot and a large pestle and mortar.

In a testament to the latest Israeli assault on Gaza, Magdy has made a sculpture to represent the masses of journalists who have been killed covering the Great March of Return. The artwork features a flak jacket with white writing on it to resemble the word “press” and a helmet clearly marked with “TV”.

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“Through these sculptures you can see the level of misery suffered by the people of Gaza. We are human beings. We tell the West that we are human too, we are your brothers in humanity. This is my message to the world, we are a people who want to live.”

With the help of his wife, Magdy has made a model of the Great March of Return showing the tents on one side and the Israeli occupation forces on the other ready to attack. It is a clear picture of the heavy weaponry used by one side against the peaceful protesters using their voice and their right to demonstrate on the other.

Living in Nuseirat refugee camp in Gaza isn’t easy for Magdy and his family and he struggles to make a living from his art. He says it needs international recognition because it’s a precise artwork in the field of miniaturization, something which is unique to him in Gaza.

Palestinian sculptor Majdy Abu Tagiyya.

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