Maisara Baroud is a visual artist born in Gaza in 1976. He has worked as a university lecturer at the College of Fine Arts at Al-Aqsa University in Gaza. Baroud holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Al-Najah National University in Nablus (1998) and a Master of Fine Arts from the Faculty of Fine Arts in Zamalek, Cairo (2011). Baroud has participated in numerous local and international group exhibitions in Palestine, France, the United States, Japan, Italy, Russia, Canada, Qatar, Egypt, Algeria, the UAE, Lebanon, Jordan, Tunisia, Kuwait, and India. He has also held six solo exhibitions: “Rubble” (2021) in Gaza, “Existence” (2021) as an online exhibition at Art Scoops in Lebanon, “Salt Boats” (2019) in Bethlehem, “White Phosphorus for the Birth of Elia” (2009) at the College of Fine Arts in Cairo, followed by exhibitions in Algeria and Gaza, “Glimmer Flash” (2009) in Algeria, and “Rita and the Rifle” (2004) in Gaza.

Baroud's recent artistic practice is marked by a striking black-and-white contrast. Employing unique techniques, he seeks to capture the essence of human suffering in his work. His art serves as an aesthetic expression of human struggles, with a particular focus on the Palestinian experience. Baroud’s art is infused with a range of emotions, from grief, sadness, and violence to peace, hope, and freedom. He aims to portray a life entwined with the cycles of both death and survival.

This war has stripped Maysara of all his cherished belongings and possessions. His home and studio were flattened, part of his artworks were destroyed, while others now lie buried under thick layers of rubble and debris. Yet he has remained resilient, balancing his roles as both an artist and a father. He dedicates his energy to caring for his family’s needs in the various places they have sought refuge. At night, he makes time for himself to work on a new page in his drawing diary, depicting stories of destruction, loss, death, vulnerability, displacement, fear, pain, patience, resilience, and defiance.

Maisara explains his vision of the daily scenes of war he captures in his drawings, saying, “I draw what I see with my own eyes, interpreting it through my artistic vision. I depict scenes of a devastated city, with crowds intertwined with warplanes and military vehicles. I portray the lives of the displaced in tents and the suffering on the ground. I also depict confined spaces filled with bodies surrounding and penetrating it, with arrows pointing in some direction, toward something.” These drawings serve as his daily message to friends, conveying that he is still alive. “It is the only way to announce: ‘I am still alive,’” he says in his own words.