The famous Palestinian artist was born on March 16th 1935
in the town of Jaffa in Palestine. At the age of 13, in 1948, she
was among hundreds of thousands of Palestinians that witnessed the tragedy of being forced out of their homes and
towns by Jewish forces in order to create Israel.

In 1959 Tamam Al-Akhal married her artist colleague Ismail Shammout, whom she met earlier during their art studies in Cairo. From then on the artist couple held all of their worldwide exhibitions together.

“We have always believed, Ismail and I, that the noblest of endeavors revolves around the human being, aiming to lift the
injustices under which he succumbs and to open the doors of hope for him. Our commitment has its origins in the awareness that our own existence is deeply rooted in our history, heritage and culture. So, we committed ourselves to reveal, expose and
express the Palestinian cause which in the end is the Arab cause. It is common knowledge that the artist must articulate the true essence and spirit of the era within which he lives, whatever the subject may be. Art will never be art of the past
or the present, but rather art for all times, and for it to be immortal, it must be original and true to the fact.”

Source: Tamam Al Akhal