Leila Abdelrazaq is a Palestinian author and artist born in Chicago and currently living in Detroit. Her debut graphic novel, Baddawi (Just World Books 2015) was shortlisted for the 2015 Palestine Book Awards and has been translated into three languages. She is also the author and Illustrator of The Opening (Tosh Fesh, 2017) as well as a number of zines and short comics. Her creative work primarily explores issues related to diaspora, refugees, history, memory, and borders. She is co-founder of Maamoul Press, a multi-disciplinary collective for the creation, curation, and dissemination of art by marginalized creators whose work lies at intersections of comics, print making, and book arts.

In this artist talk which forms part of the Borders in Motion Symposium, Leila will share images from her career as an artist and writer and talk about how her thinking about borders, nationalism, and national identity have shifted over time. She will share how this shift is reflected in how she approaches her work and tells stories.

FREE and open to the public.

A book signing will follow the presentation. Leila Abdelrazaq’s work will be available for purchase.

This event is cosponsored by Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures and The Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum, and made possible by funding from a Migration, Mobility, and Immobility grant.