The Anna Lindh Foundation’s ‘On this side and the Other’ exhibition to present an insight into the daily life of Israelis and Palestinians.

Starting from the 30^th of November a Photography exhibition titled “On this and the Other Side”, will take place at the European Parliament Headquarters in Brussels till the 3^rd of December 2010. The exhibition, which is taking place under the patronage of the European Parliament's Mrs Nicole Kiil-Nielsen and Mrs Isabelle Durant (EP Members Green / EFA), is organized by the Anna Lindh Foundation and Multiculti - Culturas do Mediterrâneo Head of the Anna Lindh Portuguese Network.

This visual art project, which will feature 50 photographs taken by individuals from Portugal, France, Greece and Poland, emerged in the aftermath of the journey of the Anna Lindh Foundation’s international delegation which visited and participated in cultural activities in Israel and Palestine in September 2009 in the framework of the Restore Trust, Rebuild Bridges initiative.  

The images which will be displayed present the perceptions of different people from different places who spent a short but intense week travelling from Jaffa to Hebron and across Bethlehem, Jerusalem and Ramallah.

Speaking ahead of the exhibition’s official opening, President of the Anna Lindh Foundation, André Azoulay, described it “as a new and innovative way to present a perspective on life in the Region beyond the dramatic headlines but still raising awareness of the need for a shared, fair peace and justice between the two communities”.

More than mirroring duality notions, the exhibition tries to encourage people to reflect on daily life in a geographical area charged of images showing often confrontations and violence. For its “questioning arising” value more than its documental one, the exhibition is also a way to reflect on how people can look at the same things differently while being in the same context.

The visual arts project “On this and the other side” emerged after this mission as an exhibition concept to be presented in different locations in the Euro-Mediterranean area.

The Restore Trust, Rebuild Bridges initiative was created by the Anna Lindh Foundation as a response to the war in Gaza at the turn of 2009, and the fractures it accentuated in people’s lives, in the peace process, as well as between Palestinian and Israeli civil society players.