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2000

2023

A philanthropic legacy

A philanthropic legacy

The AM Qattan Foundation continues to navigate Palestine’s many storms and establishes itself as one of Arab region’s most eminent foundations and a leading funder of arts and culture in the Middle East. Although Abdel Mohsin Al-Qattan does not live to see the opening of the Al-Qattan Cultural Centre in Ramallah, it stands, alongside the Palestine Museum, as an important visual reminder of his enduring influence on his beloved nation state.

"We want to nurture young people and their creative and critical thinking. "

Fida Touma

Rooted in its founder’s vision as a vehicle to nurture young minds and develop a stronger Palestine, the AM Qattan Foundation grew quickly to offer a diverse portfolio of education, arts, and public programming, leading to long-term community and funding partnerships and spawning a new generation of social impact models for the region.

In arts and culture, the foundation provides grants of varying sizes to institutions, individuals, and groups involved in the Palestinian cultural ecosystem. It provides opportunities for artistic residencies, hosts and funds exhibitions, and runs other related initiatives such as its Artist and Writer of the year competitions.

“When these awards began, they were the first of their kind and they really nurtured a lot of new visual arts and writing in Palestine,” recalls Mahmoud Abu Hashhash, the foundation’s director of Culture and Education. “They really set the tone for what could be done and I think inspired a lot of other foundations to also support the arts.”

Indeed, a number of the artists and writers recognised by the AM Qattan Foundation have gone on to enjoy regional and global success. These include ^^

The Educational Research and Development Programme (ERDP) meanwhile, is about supporting teachers and developing high quality pedagogy in Palestine. The foundation works directly with teachers, running training sessions, workshops, and open forums, and supports educators to deliver programmes in education, playwriting, culture, animation, and cinema culture.

Within the ERDP is the Science Studio, located in Ramallah, an interactive hub and creative space where scientists, artists, engineers, educators, and technicians can convene for brainstorming, ideation, design, prototyping and fabrication of interactive science exhibits. The Science Studio was developed out of a programme funded by Al-Qattan’s brother, Walid, and his wife Helen, in partnership with the local municipality.

One of the foundation’s flagship initiatives is the Al Qattan Cultural Centre in Gaza (formerly the Children’s Centre), which opened in 2005. 

The first of its kind in the region when it was conceptualised in 2000, the centre seeks to fill the gaps in mainstream educational provision. It offers a variety of library and information services, cultural and recreational programmes, professional empowerment programmes for librarians and early childhood professionals, and joint activities for children and their parents.

Najwa recalls visiting the centre and going with her brother Omar to a children’s art exhibition. “One girl there showed me her work and when I said it was amazing and that I could never paint in that way, she told me ‘if you take lessons at the Al-Qattan Centre like me, you will learn’. In that moment I could really feel the impact we were having.”

The Palestinian Museum

Preserving memories, connecting futures

The Palestinian Museum is a modern architectural feat atop a green hill overlooking the Mediterranean coast, in the town of Birzeit alongside Birzeit University, 7km north of Ramallah and 25 km north of Jerusalem.

Opening to great fanfare in 2016, the spark for its creation was ignited in 1997, when members of the Taawon Association Board of Trustees—including Al-Qattan—envisioned a museum that would serve as a lasting tribute to the 50th anniversary of the Nakba. What began as an idea soon evolved into a mission: to preserve memory, honor resilience, and ensure that the story of Palestine would never be forgotten.

Over time, however, the museum’s vision has evolved, and it is no longer limited to preserving memory only. It also wants to be an institution that can breathe new life into and celebrate Palestinian culture through innovative and creative programmes that will allow audiences to imagine a better future.

“We wanted to celebrate Palestinian culture and the present, young people especially, in a way that would allow us to look forward and not just to look back,” explained Omar Al-Qattan, who was the museum’s founding chairman, speaking to journalists at the time of its opening.

The building, built to contemporary design and surrounded by a series of gardens, contains exhibition spaces, a glass gallery, an open-air amphitheatre, an educational centre, a screening room, secure storage for collections, a digitisation studio, a collections photography studio, an indoor and outdoor cafeteria, staff offices, and public facilities.

A jewel in Palestine’s cultural scene, The Palestinian Museum has hosted globally-critically-acclaimed exhibitions and after a brief closure following the start of the latest Israeli aggression on Gaza, re-opened to host artworks of more than 100 Gazans, as an act of solidarity to artists affected by the conflict.

It also has an online “Museum from home” platform, providing free access to a treasure trove of art, writing, historical archives, music and poetry, as well as virtual tours of past and present exhibitions.

The Educational Research and Development Programme (ERDP) meanwhile, is about supporting teachers and developing high quality pedagogy in Palestine. The foundation works directly with teachers, running training sessions, workshops, and open forums, and supports educators to deliver programmes in education, playwriting, culture, animation, and cinema culture.

Within the ERDP is the Science Studio, located in Ramallah, an interactive hub and creative space where scientists, artists, engineers, educators, and technicians can convene for brainstorming, ideation, design, prototyping and fabrication of interactive science exhibits. The Science Studio was developed out of a programme funded by Al-Qattan’s brother, Walid, and his wife Helen, in partnership with the local municipality.

One of the foundation’s flagship initiatives is the Al Qattan Cultural Centre in Gaza (formerly the Children’s Centre), which opened in 2005. 

The first of its kind in the region when it was conceptualised in 2000, the centre seeks to fill the gaps in mainstream educational provision. It offers a variety of library and information services, cultural and recreational programmes, professional empowerment programmes for librarians and early childhood professionals, and joint activities for children and their parents.

Najwa recalls visiting the centre and going with her brother Omar to a children’s art exhibition. “One girl there showed me her work and when I said it was amazing and that I could never paint in that way, she told me ‘if you take lessons at the Al-Qattan Centre like me, you will learn’. In that moment I could really feel the impact we were having.”

Finally, through its public programme, the foundation curates, organises, and hosts a range of cultural events that aim to foster cultural and societal dialogues to contribute to the process of positive change. Woven through all programming is a deep commitment to nurturing learning and critical thinking.

“We want to nurture young people, their creative and critical thinking, their freedom of thought and speech because then if you nurture these minds, they can make the changes they want,” explains Fida Touma, who replaced Khalaf as executive director in 2019.

“Unfortunately, instead of the country becoming more open to critical thinking and free, it is actually going the other way, so the need for the foundation’s work remains more valid than ever,” she adds.

The majority of the funding for the foundation’s work comes from the Al-Qattan family, although it has also partnered with other philanthropic organisations and government aid programmes and received grants and match funding. 

Donors and partners include: Save the Children; the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation(SDC); Drosos Foundation; the Norwegian Refugee Council; University of Birmingham; and others.

The Mosaic Rooms

Creating space for contemporary Arab thought

The Mosaic Rooms in London is a non-profit gallery and cultural space with the mission of supporting and enhancing contemporary cultural production within and beyond the Arab world. 

Founded in 2008 by the AM Qattan Foundation it hosts exhibitions, talks, film screenings, book launches, and other cultural events that explore contemporary issues in the region through an artistic and intellectual lens. It also has a book shop and a learning centre and runs outreach programmes with local schoolchildren and youth.

Over the years, the Mosaic Rooms has formed partnerships with leading organisations such as the British Museum, the Institute of Contemporary Arts, Shubbak Festival, London Design Festival, and the London Architecture Festival. 

It has also been an important space for open dialogue about Palestinian issues and has been a leading voice condemning the most recent atrocities in Gaza, drawing more visitors in 2023 than in previous years.

“We have been able to act as a safe space where people can come together to ask questions,” director Rachel Jarvis told The Art Newspaper in an interview. “Even the bookshop has grown. We have people coming into the bookshop saying, ‘I want to learn more’. It’s become a place of questioning, as much as a place to buy books.” 

In 2024, the AM Qattan Foundation announced it would be reincorporating the Mosaic Rooms into an independent nonprofit to allow it to tap into new income streams.

The centre is currently closed while it undergoes major renovations ahead of its relaunch, expected in Autumn 2025.

In 2011, in a move to secure the foundation’s long-term future, Al-Qattan made an announcement that he would be allocating 25 percent of his wealth to a trust fund to secure the foundation’s long-term future.  This type of very public financial gesture is unusual in the Arab world, where philanthropists typically give quietly and rarely share their numbers.

Explaining himself in an interview at the time, Al-Qattan said: “What if my family decides to change the focus of our philanthropy work? What if the family trust does not produce enough income to meet commitments, as happened in the last financial crisis? “This will ensure its independence, its commitment to education and culture for Palestinians, and its survival for years to come.”

Four years later, Al-Qattan’s wife, Leila, passed away, and Al-Qattan himself died in December 2017, just months before the opening of the foundation’s new Palestinian headquarters, a project he had lived so long to see.

Located atop atop a rocky hilltop overlooking Ramallah, the architecturally-acclaimed building, seeks to be a metaphorical lighthouse for innovation and excellence in Palestine. 

The AM Qattan Foundation building – also known as the Al-Qattan Cultural Centre –boasts offices and meeting rooms, model classroom, an education resource room, a theatre, a gallery, a multi-purpose hall, art, music and dance studio spaces, a guesthouse, several wide terraces suitable for open-air activities, internal and external gardens, and a restaurant. 

Designed with sustainability at its core, the building has integrated solar energy, greywater recycling, rainwater collection and other green practices earning it several environmental awards.

Covering a built-up area of nearly 8,000 square metres, the centre is also home to the Leila Al-Miqdadi library, named for her love of books.

Touma, who is based at the centre, says the founder’s legacy lives on strongly and continues to influence staff and programmes. “There are always anecdotes being told about what he said, or what he did, or how he thought about something, especially when we have discussions about independence and decision making. 

“It’s about being clear on where we stand politically and not being swayed right or left, just having that laser focus on the value of education and the value of culture. The need for a true Palestinian voice rather than being swayed, whatever political storm is taking over the country.”

“The thing I knew about Mr Al-Qattan was his attachment to excellence, scientific thinking, and progressive thinking. This world is full of mediocre ideas, but he was someone always pushing to peel away this  mediocrity,” she adds.