One And All

In conjunction with the Adi Prize for Jewish Expression in Art and Design

The Adi Foundation was established in 2001 in memory of Adi Dermer (née Blumberg) with the purpose of encouraging and supporting issues relating to the connection between Jewish values and the Arts and design. Every two years a subject is selected by the Foundation’s steering committee and an international competition for “The Adi Prize for Jewish Expression in Art and Design” is held. The finalists are subsequently presented in an exhibition organized in collaboration with the Israel Museum, Jerusalem.

This competition was held on the subject “One and All”. The exhibition comprises works by the thirteen artists who reached the final round of the competition and additional pieces by other Israeli artists whose works deal with different aspects of exploring the role of the individual and his or her place in society. Two main ways of relating to the subject matter arise from the works in the exhibition: works that take their inspiration from Judaism and Jewish ritual (for example works by Dov Abramson, Orit Adar Bechar, Muli Ben Sasson, and Yossi Galanti) and those that are more rooted in contemporary social discourse and deal with the role of the individual within a society (e.g. David Wakstein and the Painting Team, Dana Levy, and Israel Rabinovitz). There are also artistic expressions that transverse the groups, connecting Judaism as a communal religion and its societal role in a conceptual and formal manner, for example works by Uriel Miron and Mor Arkadir – winner of the prize.
The exhibition offers many interpretations of the subject matter in painting, photography, sculpture, drawing, video and contemporary design, but does not point to any clear answers, rather laying out a wide range of understandings of “One and All” from the importance of community in Judaism, to the meaning of the concept of “mending” (tikkun olam) in contemporary society to thoughts on time, collective history, and the coming generations.

* A gallery talk with the curator and participating artists: Gary Goldstain, Dov Abramson, Israel Rabinovitch – will take place on 10.7.2007 at 19:00 ANd on 12.8.2007 at 19:00

٭ The exhibition is a collaboration of The Adi Foundation and The Israel Museum, Jerusalem

About One and All

One and All
In conjunction with the Adi Prize for Jewish Expression in Art and Design
The exhibition is a collaboration of The Adi Foundation and The Israel Museum, JerusalemThe third Adi Prize for Jewish Expression in Art and Design called for entries dealing with the theme “One and All.” A seductive subject, “One and All” is seemingly wide and varied, and open to a multitude of interpretations. It becomes more specific and complex, however, within the context of The Adi Foundation’s mandate of exploring the affinities between Judaism, art, and design. The Hebrew linguistic root for both words – yahid (one, alone, single) and yahad (together, all) – is yud-het-daled, and this joint root is central to the understanding of what connects and separates the terms: the “one” is intrinsically embedded within the “all,” and the subtle difference that transforms the meaning of a word into its opposite is the addition or removal of one letter.At the center of the exhibition are works by the thirteen artists who reached the final round of the competition; to this core group have been added pieces by other Israeli artists who have dealt with different aspects of the subject matter. It is possible to divide the exhibition into two parts: one featuring works by artists who take their inspiration from Judaism and Jewish ritual, and the second displaying those that are more rooted in contemporary social discourse and deal with the role of the individual within a society.
Judaism is a communal religion. In order to be an active, observant Jew, it is necessary to participate as a member of a community. A Jew needs a minyan – a quorum of at least ten – to recite portions of the daily liturgy. These communal aspects of Judaism are reflected in the work of several artists in the exhibition, including Dov Abramson, Muli Ben Sasson, and Yossi Galanti.

The second group in the exhibition explores the concept of One and All within the context of contemporary Israeli society. Many individuals are required to make up a collective; David Wakstein and the Painting Team focus on the function of the artist in society and the power to bring about change through the arts. The product of a continuing social project initiated by Wakstein, their mosaic installation demonstrates the individual’s quest to achieve tikkun olam (mending of the world), made possible through the efforts of every human being to improve the community in which he or she lives. Other works, such as those by Dana Levy, Orit Adar Bechar, Israel Rabinovitz, and Avraham Eilat deal with the role of the artist as witness and as arbiter of social conscience.

Another trend within the exhibition that transverses the two groups is the formal expression of the subject matter: the visual merging of the “one” within the “all” is prominent in the works of Uriel Miron, Jack Jano, and Ronit Agassi.

Curator: Timna Seligman

The Adi Foundation

The Adi Foundation, established in Jerusalem in 2001, honors the memory of Adi Dermer, née Blumberg, a young artist who passed away in the prime of her life.
The purpose of the Foundation is to continue exploration into the subjects that inspired Adi’s creativity – in particular, the relationship between Jewish values, design, and artistic expression.The Adi Foundation strives to support the artistic and intellectual enterprises of artists and thinkers who deal with issues connected to art and Judaism, and supports a lively and fruitful discourse within this community of artists while fostering connections between them and other sectors of Israeli society. Indeed, these issues have recently gained increasing support among intellectuals and artists, as well as the public at large. The wide range of activities organized by The Adi Foundation includes symposia open to the public, workshops for artists and academics, biannual competitions for Israeli and international artists, exhibitions, book publications, film productions, and a youth program in conjunction with the Ministry of Education.”The Adi Prize for Jewish Expression in Art and Design” is the crowning glory of the foundation’s activities. Featured in this exhibition, which highlights the results of the third competition hosted by the Foundation, are artworks that reached the final phase. Additional pieces that explore this year’s theme, “One and All,” are also displayed. The exhibition is held in conjunction with The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, and is an excellent example of The Adi Foundation’s important work.