When I saw the Songs of the Sunbirds announcement, I just knew I had to make something special for this column.
In those dire times, I worked day and night on this piece, trying to keep myself sane. Trying to cope with this pain that comes with being a part of the Palestinian diaspora. The helplessness of watching your people getting ethnically cleansed, going through a genocide, without being able to do anything about it…
It’s unbearable, suocating to say the least. So I let this pain bleed out of me in the form of words,
art, and tatreez. This tatreez design was a result of that.
With every stitch, came a prayer for a free Palestine. For an end to this suffering.
16,284 stitches in this pattern, with 16,284 prayers
including Arabic and English calligraphy of the column’s name.
After a lot of brainstorming, I decided to keep it traditional, incorporate some birds, while also using the flag colors. So I chose the following Palestinian tatreez motifs:
1: Palestinian Amulet motif *
2: Hebron – Flowers motif *
3: Ramallah – Palm of the Hand motif *
4: Palestinian Birds motif *
5: Ramallah – Birds motif *
These motifs, these designs, they hold so much history.
I think of Palestinian women over the ages. Millenniums ago, centuries ago, decades ago.
Those who first came up with the art of tatreez, which can be traced back to more than 3,000 years ago.
Those who practiced it and preserved as much as they could of it to pass it on to us.
Us.
The generation of change.
The generation that will hopefully witness the liberation of Palestine.
Join the cause, it’s never too late to stand with humanity.
*motifs are digitally preserved and available for everyone on www.tirazain.com/archive
Tamara Al-Barq, a 26 year old Palestinian doctor with hEDS, specifically from Nablus and Ramallah. She currently is based in Cyprus, doing her PhD in Medical Biology & Genetics while trying to stay connected to her roots via her art. She hopes to be able to make the Palestinian culture and tatreez reach every household, so the world would see the beauty of her homeland. Find more of her work on instagram: @TatreezWithTam.
