SaveArtSpace x Unibrow Sun is proud to present Aswat, a public art exhibition on billboard ad space in Queens, NY, starting April 11, 2025. Curated by Michelle Nazzal & Sam Sundos.

The Aswat selected artist is Dean Majd.

Families in Gaza have endured one of the most deadly and well-documented genocides in recent history.

As a means of solidarity, both for the families impacted in Gaza and Palestinians who have been living under Zionist occupation for over 76 years, artists Michelle Nazzal & Sam Sundos teamed up to curate a billboard exhibition, under the newly founded collective Unibrow Sun.

Alongside SaveArtSpace, the exhibition is presented in hopes of providing artists and advocates a platform. A place to amplify their voices as they continue to call for an end to the occupation and for a Free Palestine.

A NOTE FROM THE CURATORS:

We would like to thank each and every one of you who submitted to the "Aswat" open call. We were overwhelmed by the beauty and courage in every single one of the 100+ submissions. The feeling of intent was evident in every piece submitted, making it very difficult to choose just one.

Throughout the duration of our review, Unibrow Sun as a collective, has stayed committed to our vision. Our belief that beyond the call for a "Free Palestine" our duty is to make Palestine, and the Palestinians living in and resisting its ongoing occupation, truly seen by those who have been manipulated to consider this only in abstraction. We also believe that those best suited to do so, and speak their truth to power, are the Palestinians.

For this reason we have chosen Dean Majd's photo entitled "Sunset Over Nablus (Expanse)." We believe this photo speaks to the essence of why we agreed to take part in this billboard campaign - an image that evokes hope and the unequivocal steadfastness of a people and a place so very worthy of being seen and uplifted. Dean's capture of Nablus, a city located in the occupied West Bank, has shown to us an undeniably warm and inspiring vision for the freedom that is to come.

"Sunset Over Nablus (Expanse)" will be presented on a billboard sitting blocks away from Steinway Ave in Astoria, Queens. As those who pass see the image of Palestine on the horizon, may it provide the hope & reminder that within our lifetime Palestine will be free.

With Love + Solidarity - Michelle + Sabri

If you are looking for ways to directly contribute to Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, we have included a list of mutual aid funds. This vetted list shines a light on those doing incredible work and who could really use your support.

@gazamutualaidsolidarity, @gabusittahchildrensfund, @thesameerproject, @apnorg, @palshield

This project is not for profit and all fees for submission will go towards project funding costs. In addition, 10% of all submission fees will be donated to our friends at the Gaza Mutual Aid Solidarity fund, as they continue their work on the ground.

Opening April 11, 2025, SaveArtSpace will launch a public art installation for the selected artwork on billboard ad space in Queens, NY. The public art will be on view for at least one month.

Selected Artist

Dean Majd (b. 1990) is a self-taught lens-based artist born and based out of Queens, New York. Born of Palestinian immigrants, he studied International Relations with a focus on the Middle East at The City College of New York. Majd began forming his intimate and cinematic visual language after being given his first camera at seven years old by his mother. His diaristic work primarily engages with trauma and how it manifests within contemporary masculinity when negative emotions are repressed, particularly personal and collective grief in relation to addiction, violence, and self-destruction. His work also explores the complexities of the Arab-American dichotomy and the Palestinian diaspora, and oftentimes how those overlap.

Majd has been profiled by Aperture, Matte, AnOther Magazine, GQ Middle East, and Sekka, and has made editorial work for The New York Times, New York Magazine, GQ Middle East, and The Face, among others. His work has been on display at the Museum of the City of New York part of ‘New York Now: Home’ (2023), and he has lectured at Columbia University and the International Center of Photography. He is passionate about cinema, immensely devoted to his friends (his chosen family), and a proud New Yorker. He believes that love, above all else, is the driving force behind everything he does.

Connect with Dean at @deanmajd.

Curators

Sam Sundos is a Palestinian American artist living and working in Brooklyn, NY. 

Connect with Sam on Instagram at @sabri.

Michelle Nazzal is a Palestinian-American designer and cook. She runs a design firm called Studio Mazboot by day, and moonlights as a vegan chef with her pop-up, Mishmish. She currently resides in Oakland, CA.

Connect with Michelle on Instagram at @mishmishsouq.

SaveArtSpace

Founded in 2015, SaveArtSpace is a non-profit organization that works to create an urban gallery experience, launching exhibitions that address intersectional themes and foster a message of social change that benefits the working class. By placing culture over commercialism, SaveArtSpace aims to empower artists from all walks of life and inspire a new generation of young creatives and activists.