“I don’t even know if I want Palestine back for me. I want it back for the people who never left.”
– Maya Otoum
Creating art during a time of active genocide has raised a sharp question: What's the purpose of the work I am making? While some use art to raise awareness or motivate action, for me, this piece serves as a visual anchor, a reminder to choose a reality where life and freedom prevail, and where the force of life washes away the oppressions of colonialism and supremacy.
In the face of such immense suffering, I've leaned into that bigger force. Hand-carving this piece was a form of prayer to the elder power that flows with time, who will inevitably bring justice and freedom to the resistance. May the custodians of their traditional lands be protected, and may those who fight for their land succeed. Palestinian freedom is our collective freedom.
Monica Eunji Kim
Land Back
Monica Eunji Kim
An artist, design director, and ritual practitioner whose work centers on the design of symbolic worlds and ceremonial experiences. Rooted in Korean folk traditions, East Asian cosmology, and contemporary design practice, she creates visual, spatial, and sensory works that function as ritual technologies for transformation.