Visiting the Past

Time did not stop in the present while I went back into the early 60's in Israel, scooping up memories of bare minimalism for the exhibition in May, called "Israeli Made". I revisited those moments of discovering that everything we had known about clothes and utensils up until our arrival in Israel, was foreign and alien and just did not fit in here. Plain and simple was the new order.
As I remembered in clay, nostalgia took over and brought back all newly sculpted garments, shoes and accessories, souvenirs of the simplicity of Israel in the days we now remember as charming. But they were so difficult then.
I remembered the days at Alonei Yitzchak, as new arrivals, visiting the laundry to pick up clothes for the week, and finding it hilarious that we were not allowed to wear a white shirt except for the Sabath. Ata, Maskit, Dafna, Nimrod, these were the brands of the day. That word didnt exist in our vocabulary, but the uniformity and strange rules did. At the time I would never have believed that the strangeness would one day inspire me. A month ago, I had no idea that working with these memories would connect me strongly to such deep roots.

Working with focus and direction

There are times when the morning starts with a definite idea and theme and I barely make it through the rituals of shower/teeth/coffee, and in fact often go straight into the studio on the way to the bathroom and hours later, remember I have forgotten the order of starting the day, so caught up am I in the work and current project.
Then there are times like the past two weeks, when technique is the project itself, and nothing really materializes as a full blown direction. I have been back and forth and in and out of the studio a million times a day, doing little things here and there and wondering when the drive will kick in. Sometimes, it turns out, it comes with direction and focus given by an outside source.
I had been considering the work for a new group exhibition, called "Totseret Haaretz" or "Israeli Made" and going back and forth without a decision. Two words of direction from the curator and ZING, it all falls into place and I have the drive and energy back in place.
Despite the cost of taking part in exhibitions, and the obvious advantages and enjoyment of showing my work, there is an added value. Having a theme and a deadline - in fact a limit on creativity, does, sometimes, set off the ignition and a chain reation of great ideas.