Through Time

Set in an indefinite time and an unfamiliar space, Ofir Barak’s series Through Time delves into the essence of waiting. In the Western world, the quiet moments of in-between are deemed meaningless, even a waste of time. These ostensibly insignificant moments are the time spans separating us from or connecting us to the moments in which we feel more “alive”.

Via silent, powerful, meticulous photography, Barak sets out to reexamine the cognitive response of observation, of a conscious gaze, free of judgment. He sheds a new light on such moments in Jerusalem’s Mea She’arim neighborhood, a closed community shrouded in secret, teeming with rituals and beliefs foreign to an outsider, while opting for a photographic approach which allude to the observation mode of classical photographers. Like the wind blowing down the neighborhood’s alleyways, the warm spirit emanating from the works allows viewers to observe this space from a humane perspective. Like a seasoned, patient fisherman, Barak succeeds in capturing decisive moments which bring an elusive sense, between despair and faith, into sharper focus.