An unprecedented exhibition was inaugurated at the Petah Tikva Art Museum a few kilometers from Tel Aviv, "The photographer of Things: Southern Album", directed by curators Dr Irena Gordon and Professor Dana Arieli. 107 photographers highlight the history of the western Negev from the 1950s to today. The exhibition was born from a large-scale photographic project in southern Israel, initiated by Professor Arieli on Facebook the day after October 7.
The photos deal with culture, memory and trauma while reflecting the geographical, historical and social aspect of southern Israel, which has paid a heavy price for Hamas' atrocities.
The project presents diverse views of the Land of Israel, in the works of photographers who observed the western Negev and exploited it in the 50s from the twentieth century to 2024, with a background of contemporary actuality.
An album was also printed "Album South". Some of the photographers are world renowned, while others are amateurs. The photographs include artistic, journalistic and documentary photographs, as well as some video works - accompanied by texts written by the photographers. The many angles converge in a virtual and physical space, which summarizes the traumatic moments of the present with the recent and distant past.
The visitor discovers a universe where the power of images as a witness of reality reigns supreme. The photographs offer a reflection on photography, as a place of analysis of a period of crisis and its effects on the individual and the group.
Discussions will be held at the museum with participating photographers, displaced populations from Gaza’s border communities and residents of the western Negev. Professor Dana Arieli will also give lectures on art and trauma, and panels will be held on the role of photography in the construction of memory and heritage.
The exhibition is until December 31, 2024 at the Petah Tikva Museum of Arts, Haim Arlozorov 30.
Caroline Haïat
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