Art exhibit highlights coexistence, includes artists from Israel, Iran
Around 400 entries and concepts were submitted initially; a selection committee headed by artist Ilana Gur cut the list down to 30 total.
By ZACHARY KEYSERKeter and Peres Center unveil co-existence themed exhibition of artists across the world.(photo credit: SHOHAM SAHAR)
An art exhibition promoting coexistence, featuring selected artwork from artists across the Middle East and Europe – including Israel, Jordan, Iran, Netherlands and beyond – opened at the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation in Jaffa on Wednesday.“Diversity is a beautiful mosaic that enriches our experiences and perspectives," said chairman of the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation Chemi Peres, son of the late former prime minister of Israel Shimon Peres."The artistic representations of peace, innovation and substance created as part of this unique project offer a special glimpse into the aspirations of our society as told by young, mixed-medium artists," he said.The exhibit is stationed outside of the center in its public plaza, where the artists lent their representations of "peace, co-existence, innovation and the connections between them," the Peres Center said.Around 400 entries and concepts were submitted initially. A selection committee headed by Israeli artist Ilana Gur cut the list down to 30.The works now sit in the plaza within concrete-like display holders, part of the Keter Group's "Beton" series. Keter partnered with the Peres Center to make the Jaffa project possible.Exhibit by Meitav Sharabi (Yanay Yehiel)"As a company that has placed the value of equality at its center for seven decades, a company in which women and men from all religions and communities work side by side, we have chosen to promote this exhibition to make a significant statement regarding the basic rights to equality, peace and coexistence," said Keter's co-CEOs Udi Sagi and Iftach Sachar."We believe that design and art must push new boundaries, promote coexistence and camaraderie and challenge the concepts of innovation and material," they said. "As a global company identified with groundbreaking innovation in its field, we are proud to promote projects in the field of innovation and visual arts. We thank the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation for its special collaboration."
Artists such as Noa Fein and Keren Farago, who collaborated with Iranian artist Ashkan Roayaee made the cut to have their artworks displayed in the plaza. An art collective of 40 Israeli and Jordanian female artists also lent their work to the exhibition, alongside young design students from Israel and abroad and others from abroad."The Peres Center is honored to have led, together with Keter, this important initiative mirroring the nuances of peacebuilding," Peres concluded.The exhibit is open to the public free of charge. Information can be found about the exhibit on the Keter Group's website.
