Samia Halaby, a Palestinian artist, educator, scholar and activist, has been named the recipient of this year’s MUNCH Award. Presented by the MUNCH Museum in Oslo, the award recognizes her visionary practice spanning more than six decades.
Halaby’s explorations of abstraction encompass primarily painting, along with groundbreaking experiments with early computer animation, which established her as a pioneer of digital art. An activist since the 1970s, Halaby has organized around issues of class, race and Palestine, and has been a vocal critic of censorship in the arts—an obstacle she has personally faced and overcome. In this video, Halaby opens the doors of her studio in New York City and discusses her long-standing artistic and activist practice.
Established in 2024, the annual MUNCH Award honors artistic freedom, paying tribute to the artist’s role as a critical voice in society. This year’s award ceremony will take place at the MUNCH Museum on October 24th.
Video produced by MUNCH in collaboration with Mona productions.
