Jerusalem will host the first ever Biennale, dedicated to contemporary Jewish art and featuring more than 50 emerging and established artists from Israel and overseas, this September and October!
This event looks like being a firm fixture on the Israeli art and culture calendar, and is set to take place every two years in Jerusalem. Certainly one to mark in YOUR calendar!
The first ever event will take place at the Achim Chasid complex at 45 -47 Emek Refaim Street, the First Station, Hechal Shlomo, Beit Avi-Chai and the Musrara neighborhood over 15 September – 31 October 2013.
Modeled on the century-old Venice Biennale, the Jerusalem Biennale will offer a stage for contemporary creative forces that relate to the Jewish world of content. Curators and artists with different approaches and from the haredi and modern orthodox through to the secular worlds will give their own interpretation of contemporary Jewish art, from photography, video art and installations through performance art, paintings and sculpture.
There are a number of opening events, which will be FREE, including:
- The exhibition at the Wolfson Museum of Jewish Art at Hechal Shlomo, 58 King George Street, curated by Nurit Sirkis-Bank and entitled “My Soul Thirsts” (Tsama’ Nafshi) opens on 15 September at 19:00.
- The two historic Templar-era buildings at the Achim Chasid complex, 45 -47 Emek Refaim Street, will host two exhibitions (opening event on 16 September is by invitation only). The Now Now exhibition, deals with the tensions between movement and stagnation, progress and tradition, past and future- and the way they are manifested in the present. The Here and There exhibition, showcases artworks that make the connection between the Jewish idea and everyday reality, the text and the image, the way the story is told and the way it effects our lives.
Over Sukkot, watch out for these great exhibitions (at 45 Emek Refaim):
- Sunday Sept. 22: “Text to Symbol” Workshops, guided in English and Hebrew and appropriate for the whole family, will explore how biblical texts are transformed into inspiring works of art. Participants will create their own original piece, based on traditional Jewish texts. 10:00 to 11:30 and 12:30 to 14:00. In addition, gallery tours guided by guest artists in English will take place at 16:00 and 17:00.
- Sunday, Sept. 22: 14:00: Gallery talk with Israel-based American artist Judith Margolis at the Wolfson Museum of Jewish Art, Hechal Shlomo, 58 King George Street.
- Monday Sept. 23, 20:00: “Ancient Texts & Contemporary Art”, a panel discussion in English with Biennale artists Andi Arnovitz, David Moss, Ken Goldman, Ruth Schreiber and Mordechai Beck, on the nexus between Jewish sources, inspiration, and modern issues at 20:00.
During the rest of the Biennale’s run, watch out for these:
- Thread of Gold, a joint exhibition showcasing Israeli artist and musician Neta Elkayam and her artist father, Michael Elkayam, will open on 17 September at 19:00 at the cultural center of Beit Avi-Chai, 44 King George Street. Father and daughter draw on each other’s work for inspiration, as Neta creates a connection and a conversation with her father’s Judaica art, sometimes tackling painful subjects such as politics, religion, Jewish-Moroccan identity versus Israeli identity and more.
- Rami Ozeri curates an exhibition in the Musrara neighborhood in cooperation with the Muslala group, entitled Traditional that creates art installations in the public spaces of the neighborhood that are contemporary interpretations of traditional texts and customs, opening on 18 September at 16:30.
- Award-winning photojournalist Ziv Koren will exhibit a selection of his photographs in a solo exhibition entitled Seventy Faces curated by Rei Dishon and Urban Gallery at the recently-opened and restored First Station, David Remez Street. The exhibition, which opens on 19 September at 19:00, showcases Koren’s photographs of places and situations where symbols from the Jewish world meet the complicated Israeli reality.
Tickets cost 30 shekels at Emek Refaim; First Station; and the Wolfson Museum of Jewish Art (not restricted to one day) or 20 shekels for a single venue. There is no charge for entry to Beit Avi-Chai and Musrara.
Opening times:
Sukkot (22 – 24 September): 10:00 – 19:00
Sundays-Thursdays 10:00 – 13:00 and 17:00 – 20:00
Fridays and holiday eves: 10:00 – 14:00
See the official site for more details.