Cartoons are not the form of expression typically associated with bereaved parents, but the members of the Parents Circle \u2013 Families Forum (PCFF) are far from typical. PCFF is a community of Israelis and Palestinians who have lost close family members as a result of violence in the region. According to their mission statement, they \u201cstrive to offer a breakthrough in people\u2019s frame of mind, to allow a change of perception, a chance to re-consider one\u2019s views and attitudes towards the conflict and the other side.\u201d What better means to change perception, than through caricatures and cartoons \u2013 a media that does not choose sides, but rather exists between the visual and verbal.
\n\u201cCartoons in Conflict\u201d is an exhibit sponsored by PCFF and curated by cartoonist par excellence Michel Kichka, on display at the Israeli Cartoon Museum through December 12, 2009.<\/p>\n
The exhibit will then travel to New York and from there to Spain, London and any other country that would be interested in hosting this unique exhibit. Representatives from PCFF will accompany the exhibit, conveying their message of peace and reconciliation.
\nThe cartoons are varied and individual, reflecting the talents and different perspectives of the invited artists. Kichka has assembled a selection of visually exciting, clever and often poignant cartoons drawn by a stellar group of artists from around the world. Among the participating cartoonists are: Baha Boukari, Jeff Danziger, Liza Donnelly, Jim Morin, Plantu, and Patrick B. Oliphant.<\/p>\n
Robi Damelin, public relations representative for PCFF, read the text of one of her favorite cartoons (by Cathy Wilcox of Australia) during a preview look at the exhibit, saying, \u201cThis is who I am:\u00a0 This is the bullet that broke the child that broke the parents that broke the family that broke the community that broke the town that broke the state that was seeking revenge from the country\u2026which broke the heart of the world<\/em>.\u201d Damelin addressed the group explaining that although the media is full of news stories about the situation in the Middle East, \u201cthere isn\u2019t usually a face to this conflict.\u201d That is where the PCFF directs its efforts, relating personal stories and conducting educational projects that create the connection in people\u2019s minds between the conflict as a somewhat abstract and distant entity, and the effect on the lives of individuals. Because, as Damelin says: \u201cpeople care about people.\u201d Cartoons in Conflict Image: Cartoon by Michel Kichka<\/p>\n Translation of text: “My mother’s white and my father’s black!”<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 “And I am just the opposite.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Cartoons are not the form of expression typically associated with bereaved parents, but the members of the Parents Circle \u2013 Families Forum (PCFF) are far from typical. PCFF is a community of Israelis and Palestinians who have lost close family members as a result of violence in the region. According to their mission statement, they […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1458","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-art"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1458","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1458"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1458\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1458"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1458"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1458"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nIn addition to the exhibit itself, PCFF has printed a calendar that includes some of the cartoons. \u201cArt can be a wonderful catalyst to spread a message of hope,\u201d says Damelin. She expressed the hope that the calendar would be on \u201ceverybody\u2019s wall\u201d to raise awareness of PCFF\u2019s efforts to educate towards dialogue and reconciliation. The calendar runs from September 2009 to December 2010 and displays the Moslem, Druze, Jewish and Christian holidays. All proceeds from sales will go towards the education project in Israeli and Palestinian schools. Ali Abu Awwad, spokesperson and project manager, is Damelin\u2019s partner in representing PCFF worldwide. He expressed the essence of the group\u2019s message succinctly and powerfully: \u201cNo one deserves to die.\u201d
\nCurator Kichka wrote in his foreward to the catalogue that accompanies the exhibit that \u201cOrganizing an exhibition of cartoons illustrating reconciliation in conflict was an extremely difficult and challenging task for the Parents Circle \u2013 Family Forum. Challenging because peace, reconciliation and tolerance seem impossible to achieve in the morning, within reach at lunchtime and so distant in the evening.\u201d Perhaps the dynamic and in some sense dual nature of cartoons, where image and word are often at odds with one another, creating ironic layers of meaning, make them the ideal medium to portray these aspirations.<\/p>\n
\nThrough December 12, 2009
\nThe Cartoon Museum, 61 Weizman Street, Holon
\nMonday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday 10:00 \u2013 13:00
\nTuesday and Thursday 17:00 \u2013 20:00
\nInformation: 03-6521849, www.cartoonmuseum.org.il<\/a>
\nThe Cartoons in Conflict calendar may be purchased for 50 NIS either at the museum
\nor online: www.theparentscircle.com<\/a>
\nIn the US the cost is $20.00, purchase online or\u00a0send a check to American Friends of the Parents Circle, 1110 Second Avenue, 3rd Floor, Room 303, New York, N.Y. 10022.<\/p>\n