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Mansour dies at 79
Sliman Mansour, a Palestinian painter who chronicled over six decades of his country’s fight for liberation, has died in Jerusalem at age 79, according to a family announcement posted in an Instagram story on Monday, August 24.
“has died in Jerusalem at age 79”
Hyperallergic reported that the cause of death has not yet been made public, after an earlier announcement said the artist was in “critical condition.”
Livemint likewise said Mansour died on August 24, 2026, at the age of 79, and that no cause of death was publicly disclosed.
In the same Instagram story post, Mansour’s family wrote, “To the world, he leaves behind a life filled with beauty, memory, and a legacy that will continue to live through all those he touched,” and added, “But to us, we lost a father, our source of love, strength and home.”
Art as resistance
Mansour’s work was repeatedly described as tied to Palestinian identity and resistance, with Hyperallergic quoting him in a 2023 interview saying, “Anything that is Palestinian, even just being here, breathing and thinking, is a sensitive matter to the Israelis because they built their narrative around denying our existence.”
Daily Sabah said Mansour viewed art as a form of resistance and quoted him in a 2024 interview with Anadolu Agency (AA) saying, “Jerusalem is the symbol of Palestine, and the Dome of the Rock is the symbol of Jerusalem,” while describing his focus on Palestinians’ connection to their homeland.
Daily Sabah identified his best-known work as the 1973 painting “The Camel of Hardships,” depicting an elderly Palestinian man bent beneath an enormous burden containing the city of Jerusalem.
It also said the internationally recognized work became both an artistic and national icon, with the burden shaped like a large eye and the Dome of the Rock visible within it.
Legacy and institutions
Beyond painting, Mansour was described as a builder of institutions and movements, with Middle East Eye saying he co-founded Al-Wasiti Art Centre in East Jerusalem in 1994 and later joined the founding board of the International Academy of Art Palestine in Ramallah.
“co-founded Al-Wasiti Art Centre in East Jerusalem”
The ميدل ايست اونلاين article said Mansour founded the movement “New Visions” in 1987 with Vera Tamari, Tayseer Barakat, and Nabil Anani, calling on artists to boycott Israeli art tools and to use local natural materials such as coffee, henna, and clay.
It also listed exhibitions and awards, including the UNESCO-Sharjah Prize for Arab Culture in 2019 and the Palestine Prize for Visual Arts in 1998.
In a separate account, The العين الإخبارية said the Palestinian Ministry of Culture described Mansour as “one of the most important pillars of contemporary Palestinian visual art,” and said his name remained linked to the image of Palestine through his painting “The Camel of the Ships.”