Donate to Support Palestinian Artists in Gaza
Below is a collection of fundraisers for Palestinian artists on the ground, impacted by the ongoing Gaza genocide.
Many are raising money to survive and maintain after losing their homes and being repeatedly displaced.
Please consider donating to any of these artist fundraisers below to help them and their families.
Shahd Rajab is a 22-year-old artist and has lived in Gaza all her life. She was in her third year of studying at the Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology before the ongoing genocide began. Now, her university is destroyed like all the rest in Gaza.
In January 2025 – during the initial, temporary "ceasefire" – her family left the South after being displaced and came back in the Great March of Return to their damaged apartment in Gaza City, only forced to evacuate to the West of the city to stay with other family. Now, they are stuck there as the IOF invades.
Shahd has said multiple times her creative practice is one thing that cannot be taken from her. “Til death, we do art.”
Nada Rajab is a 22-year-old student and artist. She was studying engineering at the University College of Applied Sciences before her life changed.
“I use my talents in drawing and writing to express my feelings and escape the thoughts of war and destruction around me. I have lived in Gaza City my entire life—a small homeland that accommodates us all. Despite its high population density, there is space for everyone.”
Amidst much displacement and hardships, Nada has been a prolific artist in this time.
Recently, Nada started an Art From Under The Rubble initiative. She wrote about it:
“How did I transform pain into art and rubble into a message within the Gaza Strip? 🪄
In the heart of a city that has taken on a permanent shade of grey after two years of genocide, I made the decision to recreate color from the rubble to revive our emotions, our identity, and our city.
I began implementing a series of artistic activities under the “Art from Rubble” project, supported by
"The Hands Up Project" . Our work spans various forms of art including painting on cardboard boxes originally collected for firewood, sculpting and modeling with clay extracted from deep craters left by Israeli airstrikes during the latest war, and shaping figures directly from the rubble itself.
Our activities also include performing arts such as theatre, as well as creative writing and storytelling, which add a valuable educational dimension. Together with my talented students, we bring life back to destroyed spaces.
Now, amid the destruction, I continue to work turning pain into art, and rubble into a message within the walls of Gaza.”
Maysaa Ghazi is a 47-year-old artist, mother, and educator. Her sister, Heba Zagout, was martyred by an Israeli airstrike at the beginning of the genocide on October 13, 2023, along with two of her children. (Heba’s surviving sons are now with Maysaa, too.)
“Imagine that you are living in your home safely with 7 of your children — you go to work at a primary school to teach Art to students, and suddenly your whole life is upended and you lose your job, your home, part of your family, and your entire feeling of safety in your homeland... Imagine sleeping without a home and without proper food... this is our situation today in Gaza.”
Jehad Ali Jarbou is a 24-year-old visual artist born in Jaffa. She works in a variety of mediums that include drawing, sculpture, photography, video art, installation works, comics, and more.
“Through art, I try to create a special artistic space for myself, so that I can build my personal identity as a human being.”
She has been displaced in Gaza, and unfortunately her father and one of her brothers were martyred. Now she is with her mother, younger brother, and her husband. Recently, Jehad also became a mother.
Moayed Abu Ammouna is a visual artist, filmmaker, photographer, and creative director.
“I live in Gaza and my city is the core of my artistic and community-based practice.”
He was born in Gaza City and attended Al-Aqsa University, where he graduated in 2022 with a studied a BA in Media (specializing in Radio and Television).
Moayed has released several short films such as: Struggle (2020), The most dangerous city in the world (2020), and Between Gaza and my eyes (2022).
With the genocide, his family of six has been displaced and working to survive. On his Instagram, Moayed has been sharing quiet moments from his fellow refugees who are living out of tents.
He has leaned into a blurred-image approach to his phoography, bringing a different look outside of the traditional photojournalistic coverage of Gaza during this time.
Sara Ahmed is a 21-year-old artist in Gaza, who has also gone through a lifelong battle with scoliosis, a spinal condition. She had multiple surgeries but they were unsuccessful and made her right leg weak. Due to restrictions on being a Palestinian in Gaza, she hasn’t been able to further treatment.
Nonetheless she persisted with her passion for drawing and won several competitions, eventually being able to attend Al-Azhar University in Cairo, where she attended for a year before the genocide. However, due to the genocide, she has been stuck in Gaza. Her family’s home is one of the very few that had not been bombed, but there was complete destruction all around them.
It wasn’t until recently in October 2024, the IOF launched escalated invasion on northern Gaza throughout the month, which is still ongoing as of the time of this publishing. Sara and her family were in Jabalia and on October 22nd they were forcibly expelled from their home, with the men and women separated. They were forced to walk through tanks and martyrs around them throughout the whole day, and not until midnight did they re-connect with her father and brother.
On July 19, 2025 – her birthday – Sara and her family’s home was bombed to rubble by the IOF. Her scoliosis has since worsened and she is urgently trying to evacuate for surgery and medical treatment to help repair it.
Kholoud Hammad is an 21-year-old artist and graphic designer from Jabalia in the north.
“I am proud to have graduated as the top student in the Graphic Design department at GTC College. This achievement wasn’t just a personal victory—it was a moment of pride for me and my family of eight. My efforts opened many doors for me as an independent artist, both in Gaza and internationally, allowing me to support my family and build a life full of accomplishments.
But the war on Gaza changed everything. Everything I worked for—my dreams, my tools, my home—was destroyed in an instant. I lost my design laptop, all my artistic tools, and even my family’s home. Despite the destruction, I tried to turn my pain into creativity using whatever materials I could find. ”
Taha Hussein Abu Ghali is a 43-year-old visual artist, a researcher of art therapy, a husband, and a father of five.
After studying art in his youth, Taha Abu Ghali got a degree in Art Education and Humanities and then got his master’s in Mental Health. He went into teaching and covered arts, crafts, and Arabic calligraphy at Al-Nasr Model School. Taha is also a researcher in art therapy.
As an artist, he worked on his own paintings, painted murals, and created set designs for both documentaries and theatre productions. He doesn’t follow a specific style but rather uses whichever visual language serves the concept. He once had a studio in Gaza but it was destroyed during the genocide. Taha scattered paintings across different locations to try to protect them. That way if one place was hit, at least others might be spared.
Now 43-years-old, he is a father of five children:three boys and twin girls. They’ve been displaced eleven times so far from their home in Al-Nasr. In order to make any food, the family needs wood to burn, which costs money itself. After using other materials they had, Taha made the heartbreaking decision to burn the frames of paintings he’s made for years.
Aya Shaqalean is a 23-year-old artist who was studying nursing at the Islamic University in Gaza, with only one year left to finish her degree. However, the genocide delayed that process.
“I’ve always believed in healing and helping, and I’ve also found comfort in creating art. Since the war began, I’ve used my artwork to tell our story and the stories of my people not with anger, but with truth and love.
Jamal, my husband, is a talented graphic designer. He was studying at the University College while also working professionally in the field. He spent four years building his skills and working at a company that gave him a sense of independence and pride. But when the war started, that company was bombed and destroyed and with it, the stability we had been building disappeared in a flash.
Then came the unthinkable. Our home our only shelter, our only safety, was destroyed. We barely escaped with our lives. Since then, we have been displaced, living in a school alongside hundreds of other families. The conditions are heartbreaking. There is no privacy. No electricity. No proper sanitation. Food is scarce and extremely expensive. Even water and basic hygiene have become a luxury. And yet, we are still holding on to our faith and our dreams. “
Aya married Jamal during the genocide and is now pregnant with their child.
They are hoping to evacuate and rebuild their lives abroad, with a chance to continue their education and careers “without fear of bombs, hunger, and displacement.”
Noura Al-Qasasia is a 26-year-old painter, digital artist, and fashion designer. She was self-taught in fine art and formally trained in fashion design at the University of Applied Sciences.
During the genocide, she started offering art workshops for displaced children, planting sessions in destroyed neighborhoods, and other humanitarian work.
"Sometimes I feel like l'm living all my roles at once: The volunteer, the artist, the daughter, the emotional support for everyone around me. And I'm displaced too. I'm exhausted. But I keep going."
Noura started the Breathe & Paint initiative in 2025 to have art therapists help people in Gaza to use painting and creativity as a tool process trauma, express grief, and reconnect with their inner strength. You can donate to that effort here.
She is also raising funds with her family, who is hoping to evacuate when possible. Currently they are stuck in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City as the IOF invades, and may be forced to leave again after previously being displaced during the genocide.
Hussain Al-Jerjawi is an 18-year-old artist and photographer, who is also interested in comic drawing. He had been involved in the local art community: participating in galleries, workshops, and schools.
“My dreams of creating and selling paintings together with my friends have now been replaced with grief, as several have passed away or relocated out of Gaza. All of us are living together in this nightmare that we wish we could wake up from.”
Throughout the genocide, Hussain has continued to make art – including drawing on humanitarian aid bags as one medium to express himself.
Laila Kassab is a 39-year-old painter from Gaza, who has lived through many attacks. In 2012, her home was destroyed – and thus her room, which served as her art studio. Nearly all of her paintings at that time, and her materials, were destroyed. She decided to start painting with make-up after that instead, for work that ended up being exhibited in Britain.
“I’d like to say that painting is my passport to the world. It is my only pleasure in this life. It is no coincidence that some symbols come more frequently. The woman’s frequent presence is an indication of the homeland or the good land. Birds are sometimes an indication of the desire to be liberated and to stay in a circle of inner peace for some time. This is something difficult to achieve in my country – subjected to successive wars. There is no doubt that each symbol has the power to suggest the meaning of Palestinian existence.”
While her work has been shown in multiple countries, Kassab has been unable to travel freely and visit with her work. Social media is a way she’s cited to get the art out there, but she’s often left frustrated at not being able to go herself, as she would like to travel the world and create.
Now, Kassab and her family have been in Gaza during the ongoing genocide and are working to continue to survive.
Majed Shala is a 84-year-old artist who has been exhibited throughout the world. He is a founding member of Shababeek (Windows) from Gaza for Contemporary Art group. He is also member of the Fine Artists Association in Palestine and taught art for over over a decade. He was born in 1960 in Gaza.
During this genocide, Majed lost his home, his studio, and all of his 35-year archive of art. In addition, the Shababeek for Contemporary Art nonprofit arts education center and gallery space, which opened in 2009 just a few feet away from Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza, was also destroyed in April 2024. He and his family of ten are hoping to evacuate when possible.
Osama Hussein Al Naqa is a 28-year-old artist who has been an active artist since a young age and graduated with a degree in Interior Design from Gaza College.
He’s originally from Khan Yunis in a refugee camp. Drawing quickly became an escape and comfort amidst fear, particularly for portraits.
“Art for me is not just lines and colors, but a silent voice that shouts in the face of injustice, asking for change. I aspire to show the world that Gaza is not only a place of conflict, but also home to creativity and dreams. I want the viewer to feel every detail in my work, to reflect on and interact with them, and to realize that art can be an instrument for change, and a means of rebuilding man.”
During the genocide, however, his small studio and collection of paintings was destroyed.
“Our days involve searching for food and water, a task now nearly impossible to achieve easily and at reasonable prices. Many hours are spent just to secure a bit of bread and water for our family.”
Mohammed Alhaj is a 43-year-old artist and art teacher. He has had several solo exhibitions and had his work featured in many group shows across the world.
As written in This Week in Palestine about his background:
“The son of refugees displaced from the village of Kawkaba during the Nakba, Mohammed Alhaj was born in Libya in 1982. He returned to Gaza in 1995, where he finished his schooling and obtained a bachelor’s degree in art education from Al-Aqsa University in 2004.”
Over the years, he has experimented with a range of techniques, themes, and approaches.
“The works of Kamel Al Moghani, Ismail Shammout, Suleiman Mansour, and other great Palestinian artists strongly influenced him. Yet like that of any young artist, Mohammed’s artistic practice explored various schools as he moved from abstract painting to other expressive styles, tackling local issues in his choice of subject matter. He was passionate about experimenting with different materials and techniques and keen on including Palestinian heritage symbols in his various artworks.”
Mohammed now has four children – the oldest at 15-years-old and the youngest at three – and they were displaced from their home in Gaza City, then forced to live in a tent in southern Gaza. They are hoping to evacuate through an artist talent visa to France.
Hamada Elkept is an artist from Gaza who left just before October 2023 but has family still left in the Strip. He had gone to pursue an art scholarship in Belgium.
“I grew up in an artistic family, some of whom were experts of Arabic calligraphy, drawing, design, hand-weaving, photography, and montage… Before the war, the house was filled with warmth. We had two stores house, one for paint and building tools and the other for living, a beautiful house with a large garden, and my cat, Tota, who was the life of the house.”
However, their family home was destroyed during the genocide and his family was forced to live in tents. His studio was also destroyed along with his artwork.
“I make art in order to stay alive and so that war does not make me forget the meaning of humanity.”
Bonus
Gaza Hassala
An urgent relief project aiming to sustain the livelihoods of more than 300 artists currently living in Gaza. They help with monthly financial assistance for expenses, as well as resources and mentorship to grow their artistic practice. All donations are tax-deductible in the U.S.