Israeli Art Exhibit Focuses on Arafat
Fri Aug 1, 1:48 AM ET
By JASON KEYSER, Associated Press Writer
TEL AVIV, Israel - An odd photograph hangs in a small gallery: Yasser Arafat's head with trademark checkered headdress superimposed atop the body of American rapper Tupac Shakur.
A new exhibit of seven Israeli artists focusing on Arafat highlights Israelis' obsession with the Palestinian leader, a hero to some, a villain to others.
Though the Israeli government has declared him "irrelevant" and bans officials from meeting him, Arafat's image appears everywhere in Israel, from newspaper photos and cartoons to satirical impressions by late night talk show hosts and street posters bearing political messages.
The exhibit includes a charcoal portrait of Arafat, a news photo of Palestinian police fetching a framed picture of Arafat from the rubble of a destroyed police post, an oil painting of a blood-smeared car, and more abstract works.
If you ask me, this exhibit just isn't complete without at least one of Charles Johnson's Arafish creations. And, er, maybe one of these, as well.
Shabbat Shalom.
