In Gaza, where devastation has turned dreams into dust, one man’s sacrifice etched itself into the conscience of the world. Taha Hussein Abu Ghali, a gifted painter and art therapist, set fire to more than twenty of his own paintings—masterpieces created over decades—not in protest, but in desperation. He needed firewood to bake bread for his five children.
Since the war began, Taha has been forced to flee eleven times. Now sheltering in a tent in Asda City, he faces each day without electricity, fuel, or gas—surrounded by hunger, loss, and the persistent threat of obliteration. In that fragile space, he dismantled the wooden frames of his most intimate creations. These were not just paintings—they were acts of healing, resistance, and memory. Art he had once used to help others survive trauma became the fuel to help his own family endure.
"I have five children. I need to feed them and protect them," he told a TRT World journalist. "Art can be recreated, but if I lose a child, I can’t bring them back."
This fundraiser is not about saving artwork. It’s about preserving a life that gives art its meaning. It’s about protecting a voice that speaks through brushstrokes when words fail. It’s about choosing empathy over silence.
Your support will help provide Taha and his family with food, clean water, shelter, and the means to rebuild—not just their home, but the hope that art and healing are still possible.
Even the smallest gesture can carry enormous weight. If his story speaks to you, share it. Let his ashes become soil for something new.
Organizer
