Japanese in your backyard

The young artist Lilach Bar Ami is currently showing her beautiful work in the Office in Tel Aviv Gallery.

By NOA YAARI
The young artist Lilach Bar Ami is currently showing her beautiful work in the Office in Tel Aviv Gallery. The exhibition is titled Sakura, which, in Japanese, means cherry blossom. Bar Ami, an Israeli artist born on Kibbutz Hanita close to the Lebanon border, says that her childhood was a strange mixture of pastoral landscapes and continuous threats of war. The task of dealing with past experiences through her art resulted in a torturous journey to Japan, where their cherry blossoms intersect with the almond blossoms so typical to the north of this country. The similarity between the two kinds of flowers is merely one element of the common ground shared by the two different cultures as seen in the exhibition. On the one hand, the technical accuracy is reminiscent of an Asian mode as is her way and temperament in choosing colors. On the other hand, the images are taken from historical Israeli events, figures and phenomenon, such as dancing the hora or the famous portrait of Herzl. In Bar Ami's work, his likeness is situated by the summit of Mount Fuji, which recalls the summit of Mount Hermon. All the images shown are colorful, detailed and tempt long contemplation. They are all comprised of computerized graphics followed by strained handiwork of paper cutting and pasting. The result is a combination of spirit and matter - a creation of a very interesting artistic resolution for dealing with the local surroundings. Sakura runs at the Office in Tel Aviv Gallery (1 Shlomo Hamelech St.) until Dec. 30. For more information call (03) 525-4191 or visit officeintelavivgallery.com