Zawyeh Gallery in Dubai has organised Houselessness, a powerful solo exhibition by Palestinian artist Mohammed Joha, whose practice is shaped by experiences of loss, displacement, and resilience. Running through 11 January 2026, it presents Joha’s latest works in which collage serves as a visual language and a metaphor for rupture and reconstruction.
The artist employs discarded materials (fabric, paper, cardboard, plastic, and even pieces of his own torn clothing) to produce textured compositions that evoke shattered environments and displaced lives. These artworks serve as compressed topographies of violence and endurance, where the act of assembling fragments mirrors the complex process of survival and memory in contexts of destruction.
Joha’s approach redefines traditional collage: rather than a purely aesthetic method, it becomes an architecture of rupture and reassembly, where visible seams, tears, and layered surfaces reflect the fragility and urgency of lived experience. In the exhibited pieces, fields of muted colours evoke dust-filled skies and the psychic weight those living in Gaza endure. But there are also flashes of vivid colours that appear like memory ruptures, fragments of domestic intimacy, and hope amid desolation.
A crucial distinction underpins the exhibition’s theme: as Joha insists, “We are without houses, not without a home. Our homeland is Palestine.” This idea underscores both a physical and existential condition: enforced displacement without loss of identity or belonging, making the works on view deeply personal yet resonant far beyond their specific context.
About the artist
Mohammed Joha (b. 1978, Gaza) earned a BA in Art Education from Al-Aqsa University (Gaza) in 2003. The same year, he participated in a workshop residency in Darat Al Funun, Khalid Shoman Foundation in Amman (Jordan), supervised by Syrian artist Marwan Kassab Bacchi.
Although Joha divides his time between Paris and Marseille (France), Gaza remains central to his artistic world and continues to inform his practice. Many of his family and friends remain there, and his former home, with over 500 of his earlier paintings, was destroyed.
Joha’s art engages with memory, survival, and reconstruction through found and recycled materials. His collages and mixed-media works capture the tension between what was and what has been erased, reflecting the ongoing struggle of Palestinian lives and landscapes. By weaving together fragments of the past, the artist spotlights the persistence of memory, identity, and hope even in the face of obliteration.
Joha has displayed his artworks in various exhibitions and major art events, such as Abu Dhabi Art (2019); Joha – The Journey (solo) (Rich Mix Gallery, London, UK, 2016); Beirut Art Fair (Lebanon, 2016); Faces… A Glimpse in Time (Palestinian Art Court – Al Hoash, Jerusalem, 2014); and Passages of Time (solo) (National Ethnographic and Pre-historical Museum Luigi Pigorini, Rome, Italy, 2006), among others. The artist’s accolades include the Hassan Al Hourani Young Artist Award from the AM Qattan Foundation (2004) and being selected as their Artist of the Year. He was also an artist-in-residence at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris (2005, 2008).
For more information about Houselessness, please visit the official web page of the exhibition.
In addition, you might be interested in visiting Moments of Hope by Besher Koushaji and Monochromes by Amy Lincoln.
