Yael Bar-On
Visual artist, Jerusalem, Israel
Artist and stage director, in her work she seeks to explore the social landscape of a society in a state of conflict. Social activism is an important part of her life, which she has consistently pursued alongside her personal artistic career. During this last 4 months of Residency she has gained a new perspective on herself and her own society through the eyes of others.
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……………………………….Alii bella gerunt, tu felix Austria nube
“May the wind always be at your back,
may the sun shine warm upon your face, and rains fall soft upon your fields
May you be poor in misfortunes and rich in blessings.
May you know nothing but happiness from this day forward”
‘Alii bella gerunt, tu felix Austria nube’ is a work in process that explores the idea of marriage between two people coming from the Middle East. These two people are not actually getting married. They are friends who met here in Cittadellarte. Two people are always in between two sides; between hope and impossibility; between reality and imagination; and between here and there; sometimes leaning towards one side more than the other.
The artists are fascinated by the concept of marriage that requires two parties to negotiate constantly and equally, and as an individual strategy to intervene into political issues, even simply as a symbolic act. ‘Alii bella gerunt, tu felix Austria nube’ references the reality of two societies where a love story is oppressed to become irrelevant and forced us to look for the strategy, but through the process of working together to develop the project, perhaps a seed has been found to allow us to imagine future possibilities.
“Alii bella gerunt, tu felix Austria nube. Nam quae Mars aliis, dat tibi regna Venus.”
“Let other people wage war. You, happy Austria, marry instead. For the goddess of Love gives lands to you that others must win by battle.” *
*Since 15 century, the saying has been used to describe the political practice of Habsburg family.
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Other projects:
