Mustafa Al-Hallaj (1938–2002), born in the village of Salama, near Yaffa, was forced to leave Palestine with his family during the Nakba of 1948 eventually settling in Damascus. He pursued higher studies in sculpture at the College of Fine Arts in Cairo, graduating in 1964, and later attended the Luxor Atelier for Postgraduate Studies.

Al-Hallaj worked across various media, including painting, graphic art, murals, illustrations, and etchings, with a particular specialization in graphic art and sculpture. Palestine was a central point of inspiration and his works which included symbols, folklore, and references from Palestinian history. He lived in both Beirut and Damascus and suffered a devastating loss in 1982 when Israeli attacks on Beirut destroyed a significant number of his prints. He established an art gallery in Damascus dedicated to the memory of Naji al-Ali. He tragically passed away in 2002 while attempting to rescue his famous mural Self-portrait as Man, God, the Devil from a fire in his Damascus studio. His art has been exhibited internationally and is part of numerous public and private collections worldwide.