Smadar Dreyfus
dal 12/9/2008 al 7/11/2008
Segnalato da
12/9/2008
Smadar Dreyfus
Extra City Center for Contemporary Art, Antwerp
Mother's Day. This multi-channel sound and video installation is part of the artist' investigation into the role of the voice in the constitution of contested public spaces, as well as its function as a mediator between individual and collective and its implication in the negotiation of cultural perspective. The project originates at the Israeli-Syrian ceasefire line in the Golan Heights, across which the local Druze community has been geographically separated for several decades in the absence of a peace agreement.
Mother's Day by Smadar Dreyfus (1963 Tel Aviv, lives and works in London) originates at the Israeli-Syrian ceasefire line in the Golan Heights, across which the local Druze community has been geographically separated for several decades in the absence of a peace agreement. At the heart of this audiovisual installation are sound recordings of dialogues on the annual Syrian 'Mother's day' celebration, between mothers on the Israeli-controlled side of the ceasefire line and their student daughters and sons who arrived from Damascus to what is known as the 'Shouting Hill' on the Syrian side. Exchanging greetings via a sound system set up for the occasion, these voices enact an imposed boundary, striving for intimacy across the geography of the valley.
Following on from her large scale installation Lifeguards (2005), Mother's Day is part of Dreyfus' investigation into the role of the voice in the constitution of contested public spaces, as well as its function as a mediator between individual and collective and its implication in the negotiation of cultural perspective.
Smadar Dreyfus studied at the Slade School of Fine Art, London (1992-94 Postgraduate Studies in Media Fine Art), after completing a Masters degree at the Royal College of Art, (1990-92 MA Illustration and Photography). She works across video photography and audio in the context of installation. Her practice increasingly centres on the way meaning is derived from a specific relationship, or a gap, between the aural and the visual. Dreyfus' work has been shown internationally and in solo exhibitions at IKON Gallery Off-site, Birmingham, 2005, and the Victoria Miro Gallery, London, in 2006. Most recently her work has been included in 'Trial Balloons' at Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Castilla y León (MUSAC), Spain 2006, and the 9th International Istanbul Biennial, Istanbul 2005. Amongst others her work was reviewed in ArtForum, Contemporary, Camera Austria, and Art Monthly.
This project has been made possible with the generous support of The Arts Council of England, Prince Claus Fund for Culture and Development, Steim Foundation Amsterdam, DeBuren Brussels, Jan van den Brande VDB-PA and Pascal Willekens Vidi-Square.
Extra City Center for Contemporary Art
Tulpstraat 79 2060 Antwerp
Opening hours: WE – SU 14 – 19h / TH 14 – 20h