On 1 July 1933, a large crowd gathered outside the impressive arched entrance of the new Palace Hotel building in Jerusalem. The crowd had arrived from various parts of Palestine and the Arab world to attend the inauguration of the First Arab Exhibition in Jerusalem. The exhibition showcased the latest crafts, industries, and artistic works from over one hundred participants from across the Arab world. It was the first of two Arab exhibitions organized in Mandate Jerusalem. The second opened its doors the following April.

The two Jerusalem exhibitions were events of profound importance for Palestine and the Arab region at large. They demonstrated that Arab countries were witnessing remarkable innovations in the economic, industrial, and artistic sectors despite, and not because of, European colonization. The regional scope of the exhibitions facilitated the exchange of knowledge and expertise within the Arab world in the face of its geopolitical division following the First World War. The exhibitions also affirmed Jerusalem’s leading role in the Arab economic and cultural nahda (‘renaissance’) of the early twentieth century.

“Al-Ma’rad” is an homage to the two Arab exhibitions in Jerusalem, based on a broader research project on their history. It brings together, for the first time, a wide range of relevant historical materials collected from archives and private collections from around the world. It offers the space to imagine why and how, amidst the political challenges of the Mandate years, Palestinians invested heavily in affirming their economic and cultural bonds with the rest of the Arab world. The 1948 Nakba caused a major rupture in these connections. “Al-Ma’rad” treats the two Arab exhibitions as windows into the material worlds that were possible before this rupture.