Darat al Funun presents the launch of Khaled Hourani's novel "In search of Jamal al Mahamel" in the presence of the writer, Khaled Hourani and the artist Suleiman Mansour.

Set in Palestine, Jordan, UK, Libya, Egypt, Germany and other countries suggested by imagination and situation, the novel’s central aim is to search for the painting “Jamal al Mahamel”, produced by artist Suleiman Mansour in 1973, and later acquired by the Libyan ambassador in London at the time for the Ex-Prime Minister Muammar al-Gaddafi. This novel is an attempt to trace the iconic painting and discover its destiny during and after the uprising against al-Gaddafi.

Khaled Hourani came up with the idea of the novel in search of Jamal Al Mahamel in the context of his retrospective exhibition, which was part of Darat al Funun’s 2017 program Falastin al Hadara.

Khaled Hourani is an artist, curator, and art critic, as well as founder and former director of the International Academy of Art Palestine. Hourani plays a major role in the contemporary art scene in Palestine. A story-teller at heart, Hourani places the process of art at the heart of his practice, using it to exchange ideas, collaborate, and engage in dialogue.