אנא היא - أنا هي- I Am Her
I Am Her
سهاد ديب - סוהאד דיב - Sohad Deeb
دعاء بدران - דועאא בדראן - Doaa Badran
رحمة حمزة- רחמה חמזה - Rahmi Hamzi
Why?
This is the second exhibition, part two of three exhibitions to be presented during one year at the Peace Gallery – Givat Haviva, dealing with the unequal positioning of women in Israel even in this post-postmodern period.
The first exhibition, “I am the Laboring Art”, presented the artistic path of two female artists from the kibbutz movement. Gender inequality and artistic inequality were also present in kibbutz society in Israel.
I Am Her presents a penetrating view of four female artists from Arab-Palestinian society in Israel, examining the condition and positioning of women in that society, as well as their situation in Israel in general and in other Muslim societies.
The exhibition was created in the wake of the Me Too campaign and following a year in which over twenty women were murdered in Israel.
Buthina Abu Milhem
Buthina Abu Milhem brings a semi-traditional perspective that expresses woman and her role as the keeper of Palestinian culture, memory and pain through traditional sewing techniques and Palestinian embroidery.
Through artistic actions she creates garments that cannot be worn, frozen in time, connecting past and present, craft and art.
The needle sews and connects, but also stabs and hurts. The garment becomes both an object and a work of art, speaking of the body through its absence.
Sohad Deeb
Sohad Deeb speaks in a direct and liberated language through the woman’s body and the act of reclaiming it.
She photographs, deconstructs, cuts, weaves, writes, covers and emphasizes, creating variations intended to regain ownership over the female body and identity.
Her work moves between painting and sculpture, using soil, oil, spices, threads, ropes and men’s ties, while redefining the boundaries of feminine privacy.
Rahmi Hamzi
Rahmi Hamzi places her work around the female body, religious and sexual motifs, nature, beauty and perfection.
Her inspiration comes from plants and flowers, which she presents as natural and beautiful symbols of fertility and visibility.
Her delicate works combine courage and determination in speaking about natural femininity and sexuality, especially where they are silenced.
Doaa Badran
Doaa Badran brings a strong, clear voice looking at woman, her free essence and great spirit through mythologies and nature.
Her drawings and sculptures are in constant dialogue. They combine traditional motifs with everyday readymade objects and form images of the female body.
Her work asks questions about female holiness, perfection, humanity and the wounded body that transforms pain into part of the artwork.
Epilogue
It is not certain that the four artists will be able to close a circle of one common statement, but this is the quality of femininity: it does not need to.
Together, they create a rich tapestry of feminine wisdom that reflects strong and meaningful femininity in both traditional and contemporary spaces.
Still, it is a femininity that is struggling for its right to exist in the world.
