Field, Clouds and Tree

Field, Clouds and Tree

This Golan field calls me from afar. An untouched yearning pulls me in. Maybe it is the soft distant clouds or the lone eucalyptus tree in full bloom, or the warm undercurrent of soft dry air on this late summer day, or maybe it is the rocky uneven fields, or the flowers like weeds growing in wild surrender, or maybe it is the empty, untouched terrain, or the stillness where quiet hissing sounds of hidden insects can be heard, or maybe it is the lonely thoughts that quietly enter my heart, or maybe it is because I am in Israel and the land and the air and the place and the tree remind me that I am home, that I am...
The Sheitl

The Sheitl

Each face stares in a different direction. They stand in familiar and silent proximity. A second later, their positions will shift and the moment will be gone. Only the man hovering behind, representing this patriarchal society, watches the camera suspiciously, keeping distant and apart from the females in front of him. These two genders live parallel lives. They are more comfortable with their own than with the opposite sex. The Past, Present and Future blend together into a seamless moment as seen in the profile by the young girl with glasses. She is directed toward an observation point that is outside of the frame. It has caught her concentrated attention and is inaccessible to the viewer. This is her present. However, as we watch her in her present time, this moment has become her past. We stare at her as she moves into her future; her profile lines up perfectly with the older woman’s sheitl behind her. As if in a moving transition, the destiny of this young girl has been decided. The past, present and future can be seen in the sheitl. The collective society determines that she is going to move into this sheitl, into this hot and heavy sheitl, into this submissive and rigid role. Her natural hair will not breathe. Her individuality will not be supported. In time, her hair will become dry, brittle. For a young girl, the sheitl will be worn like a trophy. And, for an older woman, it will be worn as a way of...
Isaiah: 45:3

Isaiah: 45:3

And I will give thee the treasures of darkness And hidden riches of secret places That thou may know that I am the Lord The God of Israel. Isaiah: 45:3
Tree Portraits

Tree Portraits

“Vertical Branches” speaks of the human heart. Soft and delicate, clear and erect, this tree speaks of a backward or a forward state of being. It could be late fall or in the dead of winter, the leaves preparing to leave, barren. Or it could be early spring, a time of hope, with leaves bursting through, in anticipation of arriving. There is no interference or complication. It carries joy, introspection, calm, or melancholy. It is gray, not dark, thoughtful, not lively. It rests balanced in the center of the human...