Using art to provoke: Interpreting Tammam Azzam

This visual essay explores how art can become a classroom tool to discover, challenge and nurture discussions around identity and politics. How might students have a visceral engagement with concepts such as war, famine and political persecution when they may have never experienced these? What is the relationship between identity, war and politics? How might art provoke discussions on topical, provocative and controversial concepts? The above questions will be addressed through an exploration of Syrian artist Tammam Azzam’s artwork, which captures personal experiences of, and sentiments on, war accompanied by questions that can assist in provoking uncomfortable, authentic and supportive classroom dialogue.