Geological independence. A conversation about tectonic influences and unexpected forces in art

 

Ophira Spitz "If we open people we will find landscape's (Agnes Varda)"

Curator: Gabi Yair

Gabi Yair Gallery Tel Aviv

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Ophira if you could tell a little about yourself for the benefit of those who do not know you.

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I studied a bachelor's degree in geography and have been teaching geography for almost 12 years. After I retired from teaching, I continued to study East Asia at Tel Aviv University. These two areas greatly influence my work even today. After drawing for a few years, I studied 4 years at Minsher for Art with amazing teachers. In the first two years I continued to paint and then I "left" for space work. That is, place-dependent installations? Yes, depending on the place and subject. The main transition was from 2D to 3D. In the final exhibition I presented objects that dealt with and consisted of maps and atlases. Following the final exhibition, several significant doors for artistic projects opened for me. My name became better known and I started exhibiting in art spaces. At the end of my studies I presented 4-5 solo exhibitions, both in Israel and abroad. How is the current exhibition similar and different from previous solo exhibitions you have presented? The new facet for me is the experience of working with the curator of the exhibition Gabi Yair - we had a dialogue of several months which was very enriching and eventually led to the current exhibition. Some of the objects on display existed in the studio and were adapted to the exhibition and some were specially prepared for it. The ongoing principle that exists in the exhibition is the engagement with rocks and stones - a subject that I began to engage in while studying at Minsher and accompanies me in almost every exhibition. There are always some objects that are rocks - it started with the use of maps and atlases, continued with various types of paper and today also develops into drawings and prints that become a sculptural material that makes up the rocks .Nice, geology is a subject close to my heart. I recognize that there are also several works here whose base is metalright. Some of the works are processed - I work with acids or drawing on the substrate, or layers of paper and some of the works are only subject to the ravages of weather and time. The format of the works is predetermined - circle, rectangle, etc. but the product is a process of working with additional materials or exposure to the forces of nature. It seems that the exhibition is placed in such a way that there are references - pieces that touch and are influenced by themes such as Far Eastern art or geological principles and alongside this there is also a strong sense of a concrete place, that is, the fragments connect to an entire physical place - perhaps a garden, or a site in nature. definitely. In the dialogue with Gabi, the choice was made to create a place where you can move around and is influenced by the works and the gallery space itself - from the floor which is an unpolished concrete surface, the niches in the walls and the window that faces the outside garden that blends in with the works inside. The placement itself took a long time, about three weeks, and the things stemmed precisely from a desire to disrupt and not to plan. In the context of a garden, I also thought of the long-standing tradition of Japanese gardens or Zen gardens, where rocks or gravel are often placed instead of plants. Gabi Yair adds: Ophira is very flexible and sporty in her approach and the communication between us was excellent. The main principle that guided the work is uncertainty. We changed some of the works in the studio and also in the placement out of a playful feeling that almost happened by itself. For example, the main work in the gallery, a painted canvas floor work, was originally a large, smooth fabric that was painted red. Ophira added black color to it and when we brought the work into the space we interpreted it, and it took the form it is now placed in in terms of scale, volume and color. A similar thing happened with additional works; The folded painting that hangs on the wall was originally a two-dimensional painting that we folded and hung - it gained volume and three-dimensionality from the act of folding. The pair of long works placed near the entrance were also different; The paper work was originally 10 separate drawings on rice paper that we combined into one work with the "hidden" in mind - that you don't need to see and show everything. The presence of the paper works is felt in the volume and not from the possibility of seeing each of the works separately. For me, these concepts relate to the geological aspect that Ophira mentioned at the beginning. There are products that can be seen with the eyes, but in each work, processes are also expressed that occur or occurred below the surface and created the final works. We don't have to be witnesses to these processes to understand that they were or are still there. It appears in almost all the works in the exhibition. Gabi Yair: True. As mentioned, the floor was an integral part of the placement, because it also has a "natural" dimension; It is not polished and invites a different scale experience in space - a view from a distance, or a view from an anthill. In general, what we wanted to produce is also an independent feeling - the exhibition may be experienced as meticulous, but its assembly was done nonchalantly and spontaneously out of a desire to imitate the actions of nature in terms of energy. Ophira, could you expand on your work process in the studio in this context? of nature and the act of "imitation" .In the studio I am surrounded and exposed to a variety of materials, without being planned. I want to get to some kind of product, but I don't know in advance what it will look like. The randomness is interesting and intrigues me, I examine it and it teaches me about the continuity of the work. Working with materials such as ink, diverse stencils such as competition and drawing using tree branches or feathers, allow me to create a work in which the randomness and the free and flowing movement of the material are present. So there is an impulsive drive that wants to meet with the material and you allow it to materialize in an arsenal of materials. For example, two works whose format is the same are shown here - an iron circle that has been processed and hung on the wall, while the work process on them was different.Well, the story of these two works is completely different. I planned to leave both surfaces outside to let the elements shape the works. In practice, I left one surface outside and used the other as a "stamp" with which I printed on canvases; I coated the surface with wet crepe papers soaked in ink - and printed the shape on large canvases. I left the crepe papers and the gold leaves stuck to the surface as they are, and the surface took on the character of an object that stands on its own.Gabi Yair: In this work there is also a dimension of decorativeness that is expressed in the gold leaves, which is also present to some extent in the exhibition. It is part of Ophira's work process and we gave it a place in the exhibition, even if not central. Ophira: The decorativeness is really minor in this exhibition but present. For example, in the work of the rocks, there is an imprint of flowers on the paper with which I sculpted the rocks. The fabric originally belonged to my grandmother who was a seamstress. I have a strong connection to my grandmother. Every work has a touch of tribute to it. In this context, the encounter of women with my works and their desire to touch them physically is very important to me - I allow that. Most of the women ask for permission to touch and I allow it, because I recognize a strong need to touch and identify what materials they are made of. This is also why I like to stay in the spaces I present in beautiful. Are there any future exhibitions planned or projects already on the agenda? I am currently working on a project that brings me back to dealing with maps and atlases, but in a different way than how they were presented in the past. It's still very fresh but that's the direction. After a solo exhibition, I try to take the time in the studio, digest the experience and think about the next step. This time of sitting in the studio "without a purpose" is quality time that is very important to me between exhibitions - to feel the studio and give air to the next exhibition. What do you fantasize about doing that you haven't done yet? The main fantasy is to be better known in the art field and to continue exhibiting in important art spaces. In Israel I also exhibited in a museum and abroad I exhibited in the Emirates and Tokyo, but I would like to grow and exhibit in other places in Israel and in the world. I am also very interested in collaborations with artists from diverse fields of research. Finally, is there anything else you would like to tell and is important to you that women should know? I would like to refer to the central floor work in the exhibition, which was originally only painted red. When the dialogue with Gabi Hatzer started for the exhibition, I worked on "tears" objects that consisted of small round plastic containers, which I wrapped in Sisyphus knitting. The "tears" came following the events of 7.10 - when I felt that I was holding back my tears, and I had the need to cry them out. I am usually an emotional person and precisely in the first period of the war I did not cry. So I knitted the tears but put them aside, in order to start and consolidate the exhibition. After months of not actually working, I laid out the work of the red cloth in the center of the studio. In its new context, the work seemed to me Suddenly like covered in blood. I started to paint the cloth black and covered it and couldn't completely cover the red color. I realized that I was actually trying to cover the blood but no Succeeds, the pain stays there and refuses to be erased. When Gabi arrived at the studio I told him the story and we left the option to present the work in the exhibition, without committing yet. In the end it was decided to leave this work covered with only two thirds of black paint and it was placed in the center of the gallery. Some of the women see the work as a volcanic eruption, some see tunnels and some the blood and pain that were there to begin with. This is a work done in the most difficult days I have known and although the original motivation of the exhibition is the knitted tears, this work is ultimately the heart of the exhibition. The tears gave way to this work, which for me symbolizes dealing with the situation and not suppressing it.