Artist erects bloodied clay figures on Gaza beach

Clay figures fleeing their homes rose from the sand of Gaza’s beach Saturday as part of a contemporary art project portraying the recent war in the Palestinian enclave.

The exhibition, by Gaza native Iyad Sabbah, is meant to show the horrors Palestinians faced in the Shejaiya neighborhood of Gaza city, which saw some of the heaviest fighting in the summer’s 50-day conflict.

The beach exhibition, called “Worn Out,” shows a number of families fleeing.

According to Sabbah’s Facebook page, the life-sized bloodied clay sculptures were erected on Saturday with the permission of Gaza’s Culture and Interior ministries.

Sabbah studied art in Libya and Egypt and has had exhibitions throughout the Middle East. Many of his works have taken on an overt political tone.

Though the fighting in Gaza ended less than two months ago, the conflict has already spurred a number of art projects.

Hossam al-Dabbus, a resident of a refugee camp in the Strip, used spent tank shells to make vases. Mohammed al-Zamar, another Gazan, made works of art out of used shell casings and other shrapnel he found near his home.

Israel launched Operation Protective Edge in July in response to Palestinian rocket fire. The fighting killed approximately 2,200 Gazans over a seven-week period, according to Palestinian medical sources, of whom Israel says up to 1,000 were combatants, and 72 people on the Israeli side.

AFP contributed to this report.