On August 24, Sliman Mansour - a Palestinian artist dedicated his life to portray the identity, displacement and resistance of his people - died in Jerusalem at the age of 79.
On August 24, Sliman Mansour - a Palestinian artist dedicated his life to portray the identity, displacement and resistance of his people - died in Jerusalem at the age of 79.
August 25, 2026
Sliman Mansour’s passing is confirmed by his family via his official Instagram account. “To the world, he leaves behind a life filled with beauty, memory, and a legacy that will continue to live through all those he touched,” said his family, “But to us, we lost a father, our source of love, strength and home.” Beyond the family, his death undoubtedly brings sorrow to the art world and those who followed the Palestinian people's enduring struggle.
Sliman Mansour was born in 1947 in Birzeit, just months before the Nakba - an event that forced over 750,000 Palestinians to flee their homeland,. Born and raised as a Palestinian - a people who has endured great tragedy - he has, from the very beginning, viewed art as a form of resistance against the Israeli occupation.
His paintings embody Palestinian identity - encompassing joy, sorrow and an unwavering anti-colonial spirit. Through art, he demonstrated the daily lives of the Palestinian people, the injustices they face under occupation and their steadfast resistance. Images associated with Palestinian culture - such as olive trees, oranges and traditional clothing and embroidery - recur throughout Sliman Mansour’s works, reflecting a deep love for his homeland and a desire to define his people's identity through art.
He is best known for Jamal Al-Mahamel (Camel of Hardships), a painting created in 1973. The painting depicts an elderly Palestinian porter carrying the city of Jerusalem on his back, showing the extraordinary weight of the land's millennia-long history and the Palestinians' profound, enduring bond with their homeland. It later became one of the most recognisable images of Palestinian art.
Beyond his painting, Sliman Mansour dedicated himself to the development of Palestinian art, notably through founding or co-founding the League of Palestinian Artists, the New Visions collective, the Al-Wasiti Art Centre in East Jerusalem and the International Academy of Art Palestine in Ramallah. Furthermore, he taught at Al-Quds University from 2000 to 2014, passing on his knowledge and spirit of resistance to future generations.
Three years ago, Sliman Mansour shared in an interview with Hyperallergic: “Anything that is Palestinian, even just being here, breathing and thinking, is a sensitive matter to the Israelis because they built their narrative around denying our existence.” For this reason, he believes it is the duty of Palestinian intellectuals to declare that they are here. And through painting, teaching, founding institutions and more, Sliman Mansour spent decades of his life demonstrating the presence of his people.
His legacy therefore endures, inspiring future generations and the steadfast Palestinian resistance movement.
