Partial Portrait: Fragmented Identities
Aram Gershuni, Asaf Shaham, Michal Heiman, Yaron Lapid
Curator: Smadar Sheffi
Opening: Saturday, 18 November 2017
Closing: Saturday, 27 January 2018
Gallery talk: Tuesday, 28 November 2017 19:00
Assistant curator: Shelly Liebowitz Kalaora
The exhibition “Partial Portrait” explores the constant tension between the recognition that identities are a jigsaw puzzle of overlapping, clashing, connecting, and retreating parts, and our conviction that we know others.
The works by Michal Heiman, Aram Gershuni, Yaron Lapid, and Assaf Shaham resonate the fragmentation of identity as an extensive, broad phenomenon, and at the same time – a local one: the disintegration of the Israeli array of identities, as we have known it since the establishment of the State, infiltrates the personal field, undermining axioms.
While the majority of the featured portraits are flawed, cropped, or partially erased, we still feel as though we could identify the depicted figures. The exhibition is a conceptual sphere, and at the same time – a physical space, in which the seam between the dissolution of the portrait and the hesitant or desperate attempt to hold onto the essence, the inner nucleus of presence, is introduced.
The title, “Partial Portrait,” alludes to states of instability: to fear of the presence of others, or to the individual’s fear of being identified. Typical examples would be the reference to the face of God, or to obstructing women’s faces in various religions, or the attempt of detainees, as well as victims of crime, to cover their faces so as to preserve their anonymity.
In Lapid’s, Heiman’s, and Shaham’s fragmentary, skeptical works there is a common denominator, rooted in critical observation of modernism through a historical-anthropological-social prism. A set of common sensibilities links their works to Gershuni’s portraits, in which the gaze is also comprised of the awkwardness we feel when we accidentally catch a glimpse of another person’s private moment.
Gallery talks (in Hebrew):
Tue., 28.11.17 at 7 pm
Sat., 30.12.17 at 12 pm
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ASSAF SHAHAM
Born in 1983
Lives and Works in Tel Aviv and Los Angeles
EDUCATION
2007-2011 BFA, Minshar School of Art, Tel Aviv
2016 Maumaus, Independent Study Program, Lisbon, Portugal
2016-2018 MFA, USC Roski School of Art and Design, Los Angeles, California
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2011 "Specific site", Indie Gallery, Tel Aviv
2012 "New Ways to Steal Old Souls", Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Israel
"The king is dead, long live the king!", Tempo Rubato Gallery, Tel Aviv
2014 "The Vision of Division", Braverman Gallery, Tel Aviv
2015 "Division of the Vision", Yossi Milo Gallery, New York, NY
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2010 "Hot City Cool", Judisches Museum, Vienna, Austria
2011 "Popoganda", Wizo Academic Center for Arts And Design Gallery, Haifa
"Turning Point 5", Raw-Art Gallery, Tel Aviv
"Photography in Motion", The Museum of Photography, Tel-Hai
2012 "Other lives", Bloomfield Science Museum, Jerusalem
"Log In log Out", Beit Hageffen Gallery, Haifa
"Black Box", The International Photography Fair #2, Tel Aviv
"If Everybody Had an Ocean", The International Photography Fair #2, Tel Aviv
"Monocromo #17", Centro Cultural Clavijero, Morelia, Mexico
"Cityism", Chelouche Gallery, Tel Aviv
"Eden Passages", Eden Cinema, Tel Aviv
"BAAD Influence", BAAD Gallery, Bezalel Academy for Arts and Design, Tel Aviv
Independent Artists Project, Fresh Paint Art Fair, Tel Aviv-Yafo
2013 "Kofsa Sh'hora", Manofim Project, Jerusalem
"La Saison des Eclipses", Musrara Gallery, Jerusalem
"High Ceiling", Frishman Lobby, Tel Aviv
2014 "Double Exposure", Shpilman Institute for Photography, Tel Aviv
Measure for Measure, Petach Tikva Museum of Art
2015 "Blue Blind Spot", Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design Gallery, Jerusalem
"Back to the New Material", Wizo Academy of Design and Education Gallery, Haifa
2016 "Way Behind", Haifa Museum of Art, Israel
2017 "Black Box Project", Street Gallery, Jaffa 97, Jerusalem
"I AM ERICA", New Wight Gallery UCLA, Los Angeles, California
GRANTS & AWARDS
2011 The Shpilman Institute For Photography Scholarship for excellence in photography
2012 The Constantiner Photography Award for an Israeli artist, Tel Aviv Museum Of Art
2017 The Dean’s Award recipient, Roski School of Art and Design, University of South California
RESIDENCIES
2012 Schir Residency, Berlin, Germany
Aram Gershuni
Born 1967
Education
1997-1998 The Jerusalem Studio School, Jerusalem
Solo Exhibitions
2003 "Recent Work", Alon Segev Gallery, Tel Aviv
2009 "Recent Paintings", The Tel Aviv Museum of Fine Art
2014 "Just Looking", Zemack Contemporary Art, Tel Aviv
Group Exhibitions
1989 "Aleph Aleph BeGimmel", Gimmel Gallery, Jerusalem
1991 "Scholarship Winners of the America-Israel cultural foundation", The Tel Aviv Museum of art, Tel Aviv
1993 "Zalman Shoshana", Mary Faouzi Gallery, Tel Aviv
1994 "Separate Worlds", the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Tel Aviv
1995 "The Art of Deceiving", Noga Gallery, Tel Aviv
1996 "Virtual Reality", the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Tel Aviv
1997 "Eye Level", the Jerusalem Artists' House, Jerusalem
1998 "Young Artists' Prize Winners", The Artists House, Tel Aviv
2003 "Face to Face", The Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Tel Aviv
"U.M.A", Oranim College
"Facing the Real", The Jerusalem Artists' House, Jerusalem
2004 "Self Portrait"', Alon Segev Gallery, Tel Aviv
2005 "Impressions", The Jerusalem Artists' House, Jerusalem
2006 "Objects and Compassion", Gallery 33, Tel Aviv
"Bread", The Israel Museum, Jerusalem
2007 "Presences", The Artists House, Tel Aviv
"South", The Nahum Guttman Museum, Tel Aviv
"BP Portrait Award", The National Portrait Gallery, London
2008 "Real Time", The Israel Museum, Jerusalem
2016 "The Yearning for Myth", Haifa Museum of Art, Haifa
Prizes and Grants
1991 Scholarship from the America-Israel Cultural Foundation
1998 "Young Artists' Prize", the Ministry of Culture, Israel
Yaron Lapid
Born 1974
Education
1999-2003 BFA Fine Arts, Department of Photography/Video studies, Bezalel Academy of Art, Jerusalem
2005-2007 MFA Fine Arts, Department of Visual Art, Goldsmiths University of London
2014-2015 Research Fellow, Department of Visual Anthropology, Goldsmiths University of London
Selected Solo Exhibitions
2010 "The New Zero", Supercollider Contemporary Art Projects Gallery, Blackpool
"The New Zero", Bath Spa University Gallery, Weston-Super-Mare
"Times of Change", screening curated by Directors Lounge, Berlin
2011 "Original Stories from Real Life", The Muse gallery, London
"A Scheme of Things to Be", Department of photography, Bezalel Academy of Art, Jerusalem
2012 "In Your Neighbourhood", Haifa Museum of Art
"History of Looks", Oranim College
Selected Screenings and Group Exhibitions
2010 Boston Underground Film Festival, Boston
"L’evento immobile, Annunciazioni", Casa Masaccio, San Giovanni Valdarno, Italy
"Manipulated Image", Cinematheque - Centre for Contemporary Arts, Santa Fe
"What will the future bring?", Grimmuseum Gallery, Berlin
"Beyond the Dustheaps", Charles Dickens Museum, London
2011 Sheffield Fringe Film Festival
Transeuropa Festival, special programme, Berlin and Paris
"MyAtelier.net", public art commission, Rome
2012 Photo Salon, Arles
Photo Festival, Belfast
"MyPeople", Space Station Sixty Five Gallery, London & V Art Centre, Shanghai
2013 040 Festival, Hamburg
2014 Photo Biennial, Brighton
"Second Sight", The David Kronn Collection, The Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin
Sheffield Fringe Film Festival, Sheffield
"Street experiments", screening at The Picture Show, New York
2015 The 18th Jewish Film Festival, The experimental shorts programme, London
"Kiss me, Gentlemen", A screening programme UnionDocs, Centre for Contemporary Arts, New York
"Re-object", The Tetley Gallery, Leeds
2016 "The Return of Paper", The 6th Biennale for Drawing, Jerusalem Artists' House, Jerusalem.
"WE", art research project and a group show, Korean Cultural Centre, New Delhi
Grants and Prizes
2003-2004 America-Israel Cultural Foundation Grant
2006-2007 America-Israel Cultural Foundation Grant
2007 First prize winner, Creekside Open, APT Gallery, London
2009 Renaissance Art Prize, London, finalist and residency winner
Collections
Shpilman Institute for Photography's collection
David Kronn collection
The Irish Museum for Contemporary Art collection
Private collections worldwide
Michal Heiman
Born 1954
Lives and works at Tel Aviv-Jaffa
Education
1978-1979 Photography Studies, Hadassa College, Jerusalem
1982-1984 Art Studies, State Art Teachers Training College, Ramat Hasharon
Solo Exhibitions and Special Projects
1986 "Paintings", Meimad Gallery for Visual Art, Tel Aviv
1989 "Paintings", Bugrashov Gallery, Tel Aviv
1990 "The Sorting", Bugrashov Gallery, Tel Aviv
1991 "The Sorting: Undersigned", Julie M. Gallery for Contemporary Art, Tel Aviv
1994 "Michal Heiman Test (M.H.T.): Endopsychic", Ian Potter Gallery, The University Of Melbourne Museum Of Art, Melbourne, Australia
1997 "Michal Heiman Test (M.H.T.) No. 1", Documenta X, Kassel, Germany
1998 "Michal Heiman Test (M.H.T.) No. 2: My Mother-in-Law – Test for Women, Enactment," Le Quartier Center for Contemporary Art in Quimper, France; Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art; The Museum of Modern Art, Saitama City, Japan
2003 "Photo Rape", the Artists’ House, Tel Aviv
2004 "Michal Heiman Test (MHT) No.3: What’s on Your Mind? Enactment", the Israeli Fringe Theater Festival, Acre
2005 "I was There", Andrea Meislin Gallery, New York
2008 "Attacks on Linking", Helena Rubinstein Pavilion for Contemporary Art, Tel Aviv Museum of Art
2010 "Michal Heiman Test (M.H.T.) No. 4: Experimental Diagnostics of Affinities", Van Abbe Museum, Eindhoven, Holland
2011 "Michal Heiman Test (M.H.T.) No. 4: Experimental Diagnostics of Affinities", Kunsthaus Museum, Austria
2017 "AP – Artist Proof, Asylum (The Dress, 1855-2017)", Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art
"Genetics of Painting", Basis Galley, Herzliya
Recent Selected Group Exhibitions
2010 "The Politics of Collecting-The Collecting of Politics", Van Abbe Museum, Eindhoven, Holland
2011 "Living Archives", Kunsthaus, Bregenz, Austria
2012 "Strange and Close: A selection of recent works from the collection of the Van Abbe Museum", Musée d'art Contemporain de Bordeaux, France
"Document", Kiasma Museum, Helsinki, Finland
2013 "It's Only a State of Mind", NGBK, Berlin
2014 "Double Exposure", Shpilman Institute for Photography, Tel Aviv
2016 "Behold the Man: Jesus in Israeli Art", The Israel Museum, Jerusalem
"New Photography", the Israel Museum, Jerusalem
"Art School", the Helena Rubinstein Pavilion for Contemporary Art, Tel Aviv
2017 "289,148", Silesian Museum, Katowice, Poland
The 1st Session of International Biennale of Video Art and Photography, Changjiang Museum of Contemporary Art, Chongqing, China
"Repositioning: Old Objects\ New Artworks", The Museum for Islamic Art, Jerusalem
Selected Awards, Fellowships and Residencies
1994 Artist-in-Residence, the McGeorge Fellowship at The University of Melbourne, Australia
2004 Enrique Kavlin Photography Prize, The Israel Museum, Jerusalem
2010 First recipient of the Shpilman International Prize for Excellence in Photography, The Israel Museum, Jerusalem
2015 Ministry of Education and Culture Prize for Artists in the Field of Visual Art
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This exhibition is accompanied by aCatalogue