Death of the storyteller, birth of the theater (need review)

In 2015, Mr Ali Kazak¹ donated a valuable collection of posters, artworks, photographs, and films that document the revolution and the Palestine Question. He collected them between 1971-2005 while working as a PLO Representative and State of Palestine Ambassador to multiple states. The collection was part of his efforts, alongside a group of supporters and activists, to bolster the Palestinian narrative and refute the Zionist one.

It was inevitable that the Ali Kazak Collection come back home after many long years in the diaspora. The valuable collection of posters, artworks, and objects was immediately presented to the Palestinian Museum, fulfilling Kazak’s decades-old promise. The complete Ali Kazak Collection includes 52 artworks, 19 old photographs, 7 pieces, 3 films, and 540 posters, including 50 posters from the ‘Down with the Occupation’ campaign (produced by a group of artists covering the period between 1967-1978) and 26 posters by the Greek painter Katzico Yiannai.

The story of this collection was also the personal story of Kazak. Throughout his life journey, he carried with him the dreams of veteran resistance fighters and a material legacy that he pledged to preserve despite his frequent travels. Kazak was aware of the motivational value of this collection, and the enormous role political posters, in particular, played in guiding and mobilising the Palestinian street. Therefore, when he first started building up the collection, Kazak decided to eventually give it to the Palestinian Museum.

To learn more about the story of this collection and about Mr Ali Kazak, watch the filmed interview conducted by the Palestinian Museum here.

References 

• 1 A former Palestinian ambassador. Born in Haifa, Palestine in 1947, the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) appointed him as its representative to Australia and Southeast Asia. He established Palestine’s mission in Australia and later became Ambassador and Head of Delegation of the State of Palestine to Australia, New Zealand, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea and East Timor. Kazak was the founder and publisher of the Australian newspaper, Free Palestine (1979-90) and the publisher and editor of Background Briefing (1987-93). He authored the book ‘Australia and the Arabs’ (2012) and edited the book ‘The Jerusalem Question’ (1997). He contributed a chapter to ‘Israel’s International Relations: Context, Tools, Success and Failures’ (2014) alongside other booklets and publications on the Palestine question. He also organised a number of exhibitions throughout Australian museums. In 2000, Kazak was awarded the 20th Anniversary of Independence Medal by the Republic of Vanuatu in an official ceremony.