High Time

Although the artist and place of its making are unknown, the poster contains the reference to the year “1989,” specifically commemorating the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) that was founded in 1964. The PLO seems to have commissioned this poster project, in part, to gain sympathy in the United States. At the top of the painting, the words “HIGH TIME” appear in black block-printed all caps, with a golden circle hanging just below, resembling a sun. Beneath the sun and in the center of the poster, is a table with a pastel yellow tablecloth embroidered with little red flowers. On the table there are three objects: a vase of red flowers, a keychain ring with three keys, and a Palestinian passport. The poster speaks to the struggle of migration and citizenship for Palestinians, who face great difficulty obtaining visas due to Israeli control over their issuance. 

The piece’s title, “HIGH TIME,” and its relationship to the objects on the table showcases a peaceful Palestinian domesticity that is not accessible but, as the title suggests, should be. The anchor of this poster is the passport, which represents a national identity for Palestine as well as the freedoms of movement that come with it. Furthermore, the keyring with its three keys references the key as a powerful symbol of return and access to ancestral homes for many Palestinians. The Palestinian flag attached to the key ring also creates a subtle space for national identity to occupy. The last object on the table is the vase of red flowers that stretch towards the sun, representing the growth of the Palestinian state, security, and happiness.

Find it on JSTOR

Citations:
Aljamal, Yousef M. “Traveling as a Palestinian.” Biography, vol. 37, no. 2, 2014, pp. 664–79. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/24570199. Accessed 30 Sept. 2024. 

High Time. paper, 1989. Visual Resources of the Middle East. Yale University Open Community Collections, JSTOR, https://jstor.org/stable/community.37834063. Accessed 30 Sept. 2024. 

Pear, Robert. “P.L.O. to Use Posters to Get Its Message Across.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 29 June 1989, www.nytimes.com/1989/06/29/arts/plo-to-use-posters-to-get-Its-message-a…. html. 

“Yale University Library Research Guides: ‘Taking up the Slingshot: Posters from the First Pales tinian Intifada (1987-1993)’ Resources: Home.” Home - Yale University Library Re search Guides at Yale University, guides.library.yale.edu/palestinian-protest-posters. Accessed 30 Sept. 2024.