Street art is part of the experience of Israel, especially in densely populated urban contexts like Tel Aviv, Haifa, and the Talpiot neighborhood of Jerusalem. Painting in public places empowers artists to claim space, make it their own, and communicate to you, or anyone who happens by it.
Many artists use street painting as a way to make visible their inner searches of personal identity, or make a social or political statement, or just to have fun.
To paint on the street takes self-confidence, even hubris on the part of the artists to feel that their work has a place in the public realm. Often Israeli street artists say, “I walked by this place and felt it needed to be painted by me.” Sometimes an immigrant to Israel feels more foreign and out of place, so the act of painting makes an environment feel more familiar.
This exhibition gathers studio works by sixteen Israeli artists to give a sense of Israel, the place, through their eyes and hands. A cacophony of styles and colors brings you the visual noise you would encounter on the streets of Israel.
