What did Youval Hai's camera len capture in the researchers rooms of The Buber Fellows Programme? If one can guess whether this is the room of a philosopher or the room of a historian.

Zadok Ben David

Opening Date: 4 June, 2018

An exploration of human nature, and the human figure as part of the natural

environment, have been prevailing themes in Ben-David’s work. Animals, plants and

invisible natural forces, like gravity and light, are used as metaphors and tools to

examine and explore human behaviour.

Ben-David’s ability to communicate can be seen as an infinite string of unconscious

elements exploring our identity and testing our ideas and emotions.Scientific

discoveries and innovation, as well as illusion and magic, create a series of

propositions in Ben-David’s work concerning the absurd, as well as the hope,

inherent in the human condition.

Evolution and Theory is my first installation and is still the largest.

Most of the images were inspired by illustrations found in late nineteenth-century scientific

books. There are 250 sculptures, all hand cut from aluminium sheet and hand painted.

Individual pieces range in size from 20 cm to 2.8 metres high. Large and small pieces are

juxtaposed, seemingly at random, their bases concealed by a thin layer of fine sand. The

installation occupies a floor area of 400 square metres and took three years to complet.

What Makes Us Human

Moshe Zabari
Opening Date: May, 2016

Judaica artist Moshe Zabari expresses the essence of visual art in modern Judaism in novel ways. His work is influenced by his family's cultural heritage, his father's stone carving works, his grandfather's calligraphy work as a Jewish scribe (a Sofer), and by filigree and granulation techniques. By combining diverse styles and cultures, Zabari's works are innovational and unique.
"Scripture as Sculpture" is a series of five marble sculptures illustrating the books of the Torah. The biblical world, the archeology of the land of Israel, the Jewish texts and the Hebrew language are all expressed neatly – on the verge of abstraction, lacking symmetry, as in the international style. Yet Zabari states, "We must recognize the importance of the historical and cultural past as the foundation for contemporary artistic vision and as a source of inspiration for the continuation of Jewish creativity. Looking back is an integral part of the creative process. I try to link my contemporary art with that of the past, in order to develop continuity of past generations."
We cherish the artist for donating his sculptures to the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

For additional information about the works see: Genesis, Exodus, Levitictus, Numbers & Deuteronomy
---------
1935  Born in Jerusalem
1955-1958 Studied at Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, Jerusalem
1961-1988 Worked as an artist-in-residence and later on as director of the Tobe Pascher Workshop in The Jewish Museum, New York
1988  Returned to Israel and settled in his childhood house in Jerusalem
2003-2004 Crafted the marble series "Scripture as Sculpture" in Carrara, Italy