Fragile Nest
Yazan Abu Salameh

In his solo exhibition, Fragile Nest, Yazan Abu Salameh explores the increasing presence of lifeless, colourless concrete structures and the overwhelming visual weight of cement, the material that has been linked to a radical transformation of the character of Palestinian towns in recent decades. Towns continue to become increasingly cramped for their residents, as the occupation tightens its grip not only by surrounding Palestinian cities with colonial military structures that weigh heavily upon the natural landscape and the Palestinian horizon, but also by pushing Palestinians toward vertical urban expansion at an accelerating pace. 

Concrete structures stretch before the eyes in every direction, while nature attempts to reclaim its place, but to no avail. In Abu Salameh’s works, a horse or a flock of birds appear occasionally, symbolising an attempt to recover lost nature; yet, these attempts remain fragile in the face of concrete intrusion. 

No wonder Abu Salameh is preoccupied with the cement invasion of the Palestinian landscape in the past years; since he opened his eyes to the world, the recession of Palestinian nature has accelerated in favour of a colonial geography. The restrictions imposed by the occupation on the Palestinian construction and urban expansion, confining them to narrow geographical areas, have led to dense vertical architectural growth at the expense of green spaces. Inadequate urban planning and the greed of real estate investment have only exacerbated this situation to the point where Palestinians can no longer connect with nature, nor gaze upon a wide horizon, as cement has encroached on sight and visibility. 

Abu Salameh employs multiple materials, including cement itself, to reflect the extortionate increase in vertical residential buildings. In his paintings, one can notice an overwhelming grey colour representing concrete buildings pressed tightly together with small windows. He also uses colourful plastic Lego bricks, in stark contrast to the dull, heavy concrete, to critique the fragile, temporary nature of these buildings and their fragile fate despite their heavy presence. Like the bricks, these buildings might be attractive in their external form, yet can be disassembled as easily as they were assembled. By bringing these two materials together, Abu Salameh critiques modern real estate projects that present housing as a consumer product, much like a plastic toy, while also criticising how cement has taken from nature and the open skies, replacing them with colonial-engineered spaces and false modernity. 

Growing up in Bethlehem, at a short distance from the apartheid wall, and the daily collision with checkpoints, watchtowers, and barriers, on one hand, and with Palestinian apartment blocks and modern housing projects on the other, has shaped Abu Salameh’s vision. In Fragile Nest, the homeland becomes the fragile nest as the artist draws attention to the importance of rethinking the relationship between home, land, and the horizon. 

Abu Salameh’s exhibition, Fragile Nest, is a protest on a daily scene that no longer resembles or represents him and his generation; it is a form of rebellion against colonised nature.