A series of paintings dealing with my entrance to the orchard. The exhibition presents seven large paintings, (about 2×2 meters each) in acrylic and oil paints on canvas in a space that becomes colorful and cluttered and gives a feeling that the viewer also enters the orchard. The word orchard has many meanings for me, from Dionysian celebrations, through paradise to the symbol of Jewish settlement. In playfulness and fun I enter the orchard in a variety of ways and situations. This is a typical move of my way of working, unexpected connections, playfulness and the use of forms of collective memory. The basis for the series of works is my return to Israel about a year and a half ago from a long stay abroad and the charged feelings that accompany me in Israel as a permanent immigrant with a different identity from Israel. From my point of view, I seek to challenge the existing order and instill in it the elements that fascinate me from Judaism and other religions and traditions such as the Hindu, Native American and elements from the New Age, using my personal biography as well the viewer’s.
The view from the exhibition “The Orchard – I came to step here again”, 2022, The new gallery of the Hall for the Arts, Haifa University, Photo credit: Ariel Verhaftig Venzian
Sages Glow in The Dark, 206 X 198 cm , Acrylic and Oil on canvas, 2022 Photo credit: Ariel Verhaftig Venzian
Cutting Back On Plantings, Acrylic and oil on canvas, 206 x 198 cm, 2022
Photo credit: Ariel Verhaftig Venzian
The Phallus Eater, Acrylic and oil on canvas, 200 x 198, 2022
Photo credit: Ariel Verhaftig Venzian
Bird’s Nest Hall, Acrylic and oil on canvas, 206 x 198 cm, 2022
Photo credit: Ariel Verhaftig Venzian
Tigress Comes To Be Petted, Oil on canvas, 200 x 198 cm, 2022
Photo credit: Ariel Verhaftig Venzian
The Tree of Life and Knowledge, Acrylic and oil on canvas, 198 x 215 cm, 2022
Photo credit: Ariel Verhaftig Venzian
The Birth, Oil on canvas, 198 x 150, 2022
Photo credit: Ariel Verhaftig Venzian