Four portraits created as a gesture of welcome for the artists participating in the Young Artists from an Ancient Land residency in Bologna
I have prepared four portraits of the Palestinian students participating in the international project Young Artists from an Ancient Land.
The portraits were created as a gesture of welcome and will be given to the artists during their residency in Bologna, which will take place from June 4 to June 28 and will culminate in a final exhibition scheduled for June 26 at the Academy of Fine Arts.
The project is promoted by the Visual Arts Forum of Ramallah, the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna, and Studio Antonello Ghezzi, with the support of Legacoop Bologna, Camst, and Coop Alleanza 3.0, together with Camplus and Scuderie Future Food Living Lab, and in collaboration with the Fondazione Gramsci Emilia-Romagna and Parsec.
The initiative aims to highlight the work of four young Palestinian women artists and to offer them a period of artistic and educational residency in Bologna. During this time, the artists will work in the spaces of Studio Antonello Ghezzi, take part in meetings and educational sessions with teachers and curators, and develop new works in dialogue with the cultural context of the city.
On June 12, the official presentation of the project will take place as part of Opentour 2026 – UNBOXED, the twelfth edition of the event promoted by the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna.
The Visual Arts Forum of Ramallah, founded in 2002, is dedicated to supporting the creative and artistic development of young Palestinians through education and the promotion of emerging talent, using art as a tool for social change.
The project will feature contributions from Enrico Fornaroli (Director of the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna), Deema Erhaid (Director of the Visual Arts Forum of Ramallah, joining online), Paolo Ghezzi (co-founder of Antonello Ghezzi), Lorenzo Calabrese (President of the Student Council ABABO), and Carlo Branzaglia (lecturer at the Academy).
With the participation of representatives from Camplus, Fondazione Gramsci Emilia-Romagna, Parsec, Legacoop Bologna, and Scuderie Future Food Living Lab, the project is part of a broad network of collaborations between cultural institutions, universities, and cooperative organizations.
The portraits I created will be given to the four students as a gesture of welcome and personal attention: a way of receiving them through the language of drawing, even before their work in Bologna begins.
