Dance: Complementary counterparts

The Kontrapunkt series at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art brings together visual and performance arts

By ORI J. LENKINSKI
Choreographer and dancer Hillel Kogan’s ‘We Love Arabs.’ (photo credit: GADI DAGON)
Choreographer and dancer Hillel Kogan’s ‘We Love Arabs.’
(photo credit: GADI DAGON)
The work of a curator involves a certain kind of matchmaking. Fitting together the works of different artists using different media to convey a particular message requires vision and savvy. With her series Kontrapunkt, Lior Avizoor has provided an example of curation at its finest.
The six-part series of Avizoor’s initiation has been running at the Tel Aviv Museum since mid-2014, pairing the museum’s visual art exhibits with existing dance works. Each evening carries a theme, such as Smashing the Stereotypes: Deforming and Feminism or At the Borders of the Unknown: The Uncanny.
Kontrapunkt No. 4’s topic was Shattering the Myth: Depiction of Men in Israeli Art. The event began with an invitation to tour the Dina and Raphael Recanati Family Foundation Galleries where The Museum Presents Itself 2: Israeli Art from the Museum Collection exhibition just opened. The second part of the event was a lecture by Dr. Gideon Ofrat entitled “Erection and Limpness: Depiction of Men in Israeli Art.” Finally, choreographer Roy Assaf presented his male trio work The Hill.
For the fifth edition of Kontrapunkt, Avizoor has invited Hillel Kogan to present his duet We Love Arabs followed by a viewing of the photography exhibit This Place. In between the two, a panel discussion entitled “Beyond Cliches – Examining Worn Out Symbols” will be held with Kogan, Avizoor and exhibition curator Nili Goren.
Kogan’s We Love Arabs has been making the rounds in festivals since its premier in 2013. Danced by Kogan and Adi Boutrous, We Love Arabs sheds light on the stereotypes and preconceived notions surrounding Arab-Israeli dialogue and coexistence.
Kogan’s wry sense of humor makes this piece enjoyable while also full of impact. The exhibition This Place brings together the work of 12 photographers. The artists were asked to gather images that would contradict common ideas of life in Israel and the West Bank. With the fifth Kontrapunkt around the corner, the end of this inspired series looms in the near future. One can only hope that Avizoor will continue her work, bringing different genres, media, artists and audiences together.
Kontrapunkt No. 5 takes place tonight from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. For more information, visit www.tamuseum.org.il.