Artists unite to raise funds for medical care charity in Palestine

Generosity has been 'immense', says organiser of auction to support Doctors Without Borders (MSF)

Lost Children is one of several works donated by Jeremy Deller to the fundraising auction. Photo: Jeremy Deller

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More than 200 artists have come together to auction their works in a fund-raiser for a humanitarian medical care charity operating in Palestine.

The donations span the disciplines of art, architecture, engineering and literature and all proceeds will go towards the work of Doctors Without Borders (MSF) in Gaza and the West Bank. The charity is still working in Gaza at a reduced capacity.

Online bidding has opened and runs until December 1 and an accompanying exhibition of all the artworks will be on show in London for two weeks, starting on Friday.

“The generosity has been immense, particularly because it’s been artist-led,” said artist Rana Begum, one of the organisers. “You realise what you can achieve and what you can do when so many people come together. So many people want to do something about the war, and so many feel so helpless.”

The auction idea emerged a few months ago after a meeting at the Royal Academy, the UK’s prestigious arts society. From there, the fund-raiser quickly gained momentum. Instead of having to plead with artists for donations, nearly everyone the organisers approached agreed to take part.

As word spread, more artists reached out, eager to contribute their work. Several offered their services for free, including the art-handling company Zhero and the gallery space, located at 14 Wharf Road near Old Street in East London, where the artworks will be displayed.

Wolfgang Tillman's Paper drop (reversed) II resembles a drop of blood and has been donated to the auction. Photo: Wolfgang Tillman

Contributors include major names from the international scene such as Mona Hatoum, Jeremy Deller, Mark Wallinger and Wolfgang Tillmans – a mix of older and younger artists, and those from across geographies.

The artworks are expected to sell for between £300 (Dh1,390) and £50,000 (Dh232,000), and perhaps more. Major items include a photograph by Shirin Neshat and work by Antony Gormley. “We've got artists, designers, architects, engineers, writers contributing,” says Begum. “I think this is an opportunity now for collectors to really pull together and show solidarity as well.

“The event is about solidarity and ally-ship in so many ways. It's about building networks, as artists have always done. Art has always been a mode to express solidarity, to dissent, to bear witness, and to come together.”

While London has hosted a number of auctions and fund-raising events for Gaza, this will be the largest to date. Curators Rahila Haque and Nabila Abdel Nabi are also organising public programming for the two-week period. In the gallery’s upstairs they will show work by the activist-artist collective Forensic Architecture that details the patterns of violence in Gaza’s health system, while writers from the Poetry for Palestine project will lead reading sessions and workshops.

“The collective gesture of donating works to fundraise is absolutely astounding,” added Abdel Nabi. “But we also wanted to build on the momentum to contextualise what's happening and offer a way of learning and sharing resources about the war on Gaza.”