GAZA: THE CHRONICLE OF A GENOCIDE opens in Bayeux

GAZA: THE CHRONICLE OF A GENOCIDE, an exhibition by WARM presenting the work of Palestinian photographer Ali Jadallah, opened in Bayeux as part of the 33rd Prix Bayeux Calvados-Normandie des correspondants de guerre, drawing strong public and media attention throughout the festival week.

Presented at Galerie Médusa from 5 to 11 October and curated by Damir Šagolj, the exhibition brought together photographs made by Jadallah in Gaza since 8 October 2023 for Anadolu Agency. Remaining in Gaza throughout the war, Ali has continued to document bombardment and destruction, civilian deaths, mass displacement, overwhelmed hospitals, hunger and the daily struggle for survival, while living through the same events himself.

The exhibition received significant attention in the French media. Ouest-France, the leading regional newspaper, devoted a separate article to Ali and the exhibition, under the headline “The most detailed work ever produced by a photographer on a genocide.” The article looked at the thousands of photographs Ali has made in Gaza and the process of turning this extraordinary body of work into the Bayeux exhibition.

Libération also singled out Ali’s work in its coverage of the festival, writing about the limits of what can be shown of the “unspeakable ordeal in Gaza.” The newspaper described the photographs as documents that could one day be presented before international courts in connection with allegations of war crimes.

Le Courrier de l’Atlas selected the exhibition as one of its festival highlights. Writing from Galerie Médusa, Fadwa Miadi described Ali’s photographs as “pieces of evidence”, images that would not leave visitors unmoved.

The Bayeux exhibition followed its first presentation during WARM Festival in Sarajevo in July. Produced by WARM and presented in Bayeux in partnership with the Prix Bayeux Calvados-Normandie, it is built around an extraordinary body of work that Ali Jadallah continues to produce from inside Gaza.