From Gqeberha to Gaza, South African artist Farook Mohammed paints Gaza onto Africa's anti-apartheid canvas

South African visual artist Farook Mohammed has built his reputation on work that confronts audiences with the reality of Palestinian life under Israeli occupation. His pieces are provocative because they are meant to unsettle. They convey political and historical messages that resonate directly with Gaza and its ongoing devastation.

Farook’s insistence on carrying Gaza's truth on canvas has made him a target for Israeli officials and their supporters. He has repeatedly pushed the South African government to prosecute citizens who fight alongside the Israeli army, a campaign that has brought him sharp criticism but also growing public support.

Speaking to The New Arab, he said, “I advocate for peace, unity, mutual respect and prosperity for all. It is vitally important to understand this. I have asked the South African government to hold South African citizens to account for joining the Israeli Defence Forces and killing Palestinians. This has been happening for years, long before the current escalation.

Farook’s art is only one part of his activism. He has spoken at rallies across the country, marched in solidarity with Palestinians, and covered public walls with murals and graffiti that urge South Africans to recognise the urgency of the Palestinian fight for freedom.

Farook owns the Afro Arabian Empire gallery in his hometown of Gqeberha. He said he has been an artist since childhood.

“My earliest memories of creating come from childhood, inspired by my mother, who always encouraged creativity and compassion through art. Although I have drawn and painted throughout my life, I only formally committed to my art career in 2019. My work is deeply rooted in storytelling, capturing moments where history, spirituality and identity converge. For me, art is not only expression; it is documentation. It is how I preserve truth and reinterpret the world through an African lens,” he said.

Farook added that his activism began in primary school when he joined a pro-Palestine protest against what he described as the apartheid regime of Israel, drawing early parallels between South Africa’s struggle and that of Palestinians. His work has made him a prominent voice in the movement for Palestinian liberation. He was recently recognised by Most Influential People of African Descent (MIPAD) under the Afrofuturism and Creative category at the close of the United Nations International Decade for People of African Descent.

“In my own words, I often say God chooses modern-day Israel to be an example of what monsters really look like because their actions have nothing to do with Judaism ”, he said, adding that the world now faces a divide between the heartless and the righteous.

Farook said he was among those who influenced the South African government to report Israel to the International Court of Justice.

He told TNA, “Over the years, I realised that marching and protesting were not enough; change required accountability. So I began advocating for governments, starting with the South African government, and for international bodies to take legal action against those who violate human rights and international law.

“For me, Palestine represents the world’s conscience. To stand for Palestine is to stand for humanity. It is a test of whether we, as people, can recognise injustice when we see it and act to end it. The same applies to our people in South Africa whose land had been stolen, and this too I am seeking to correct through legal processes that ensure the return of people’s rights to their ancestral land.”

Farook recently exhibited two artworks in a group exhibition at the GFI Gallery in Gqeberha, where his pieces drew significant attention. Titled Dialogue of Origins and Echoes of the Crescent Dunes, the paintings form part of his interpretation of the exhibition theme AfroScape.

He told TNA that AfroScape describes a landscape that merges Africa’s northern and southern identities into a single spiritual and cultural continent. He explained, “In Dialogue of Origins, an Arab man and an African woman sit facing each other, their garments blending Arab and African design. They represent unity, conversation and shared struggle. Between them are pottery forms, symbols of trade, tradition and shared heritage.”

“Echoes of the Crescent Dunes situates a grand mosque behind golden desert dunes, with African pottery in the foreground. It is a visual bridge between the sacred and the earthly, showing how African and Arab histories, faiths, and aesthetics have always intertwined.”

Farook said the two paintings affirm that Africa and the Arab world are bound by blood, history and purpose. He added that this unity mirrors the long-standing solidarity of Africans with the Palestinian struggle for freedom and dignity.

He believes art restores dignity to the oppressed, including Palestinians. “Through art, we humanise what others dehumanise. When people see injustice expressed through colour, texture and emotion, it becomes harder to ignore. So yes, I believe art can and must play a role in exposing the apartheid system of Israel, just as South African art played a crucial role in resisting apartheid here. Art gives voice to the voiceless. It documents the truth before history is rewritten. The connection runs deep, spiritually, historically and genealogically.”

He added, “The struggle of the Palestinian people resonates strongly across Africa, especially among those who endured colonialism and apartheid. Our solidarity is not symbolic; it is ancestral. It is a recognition that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere, and that our liberation is interconnected.”

Joseph Chirume is a freelance journalist from Zimbabwe based in South Africa, writing on human rights and immigration issues with a focus on the South African landscape. He has reported for GroundUp News