Gaza 3000 — Leo Crane

A biblical account of betrayal and retribution

This drawing depicts a biblical story (Judges 13-16): Samson the Israelite slays 1000 Palestinians after his thwarted marriage to a Gazan woman. In a rapidly escalating conflict, he succumbs to both metaphorical blindness (fury) and literal blindness when he is betrayed, captured and punished by the Gazans. Ultimately, he destroys the civic infrastructure of the city (the temple), killing 3000 more people, including himself.

This drawing began as a study of Giambologna’s sculpture Samson Slaying a Philistine as I prepared for my V&A workshop Sketching the Museum. As an animator, I was drawn to the dynamism of the 360-degree pose and developed a composition to show multiple viewpoints simultaneously. However, the subject matter took on a new meaning at the outbreak of war on 7 October 2023.

In light of unfolding events, the drawing became a commentary on 3000 years of conflict in the region. I worked back into the study drawing with violent marks emphasising the brutality of the action. With my final marks, I blinded the protagonist to show both fury and futility.