Explore Lens on Gaza: The Sun and Moon Still Rise at Patrick Studios by photographer and activist Fadi A. Thabet.
Lens on Gaza: The Sun and Moon Still Rise presents an intimate visual narrative of life, resilience, and humanity in Gaza, through photographer Fadi A. Thabet’s own lived experience and work within the city.
This exhibition creates space to engage with stories that transcend borders. It is not only a record of lived experience, but a testament to humanity: to families, children and communities who continue to live, create and hope in Gaza.
Join us for the launch on Friday 17 April 2026 from 6:30pm, and the exhibition will run until 9 May 2026.
Following the opening, the exhbition will be open:
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday – 12 – 4pm.
Saturday and Sunday – 12 – 4pm.
If you would like to visit outside those times, please email projects@esamail.org.uk
Born in 1978 in the central Gaza Strip, Thabet is a photographer, human rights activist and art education teacher. His practice is grounded in the belief that art must serve a purpose and that creative work must respond to the realities people face. His photographs act as both testimony and invitation, asking audiences to look closely and with care.
Alongside his photographic work, Thabet supports children who have experienced war and displacement. Through art education and creative expression, he works with young people living in camps, helping them process trauma and rebuild a sense of hope and agency. Photography, in this context, becomes both witness and tool: a way to document, and a way to heal.
The exhibition will function as a fundraiser for Gaza, with all proceeds supporting Fadi A. Thabet and the children he works with in Gaza.
Alongside Fadi A. Thabet’s work, Lens on Gaza brings together new responses from artists based in Leeds, developed through a period of supported production at Convention House. These works sit in dialogue with the exhibition, offering additional perspectives on image-making, memory and lived experience, and contributing to the wider fundraising effort for Gaza.
Hafifa Ahmed
Hafifa Ahmed is an Arabic calligrapher, sculptor and installation artist working across text, memory and narrative. Her practice bridges traditional calligraphy and contemporary art, transforming language into visual and spatial forms that reflect identity, migration and cultural transmission. Through both artworks and participatory projects, she creates space to engage with the poetic and political dimensions of language and lived experience.
You can also join Hafifa for an Abstract Arabic Calligraphy Workshop – where you can learn the foundations of Arabic calligraphy.
Find Hafifa: @ahafifa
Khola Ilyas
Khola Ilyas is a self-taught photographer whose practice spans portraiture, everyday observation and protest. Her work explores photography as both expression and record — a way to capture fleeting moments while documenting histories as they unfold. Through her images, Khola seeks to convey atmosphere, emotion and urgency, using photography to amplify voices and events often underrepresented or overlooked.
Find Khola: @kholaandhercamera
Following its launch in Leeds, the exhibition is expected to tour to Glasgow (14 May – 4 June 2026), Edinburgh (12 June – 3 July 2026) and Belfast (10 July – 31 July 2026), with further details shared through Bethlehem Cultural Festival.
Lens on Gaza: The Sun and Moon Still Rise is presented in partnership with Fadi A. Thabet, East Street Arts, Bethlehem Cultural Festival, Leeds Palestinian Film Festival and cultural producer Shazia Bibi.
The exhibition is funded by East Street Arts, Bethlehem Cultural Festival, Arts Council England and the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
