Nati Hoki (b. 1993) and Tom Ariel (b. 1990) have been collaborating ever since they began their studies at Shenkar College. Their project focused on elements that were once working mechanical devices but have since been abandoned and left to rust. The rust and foliage that now grow inside them have become an integral part of their new reality. Using long exposures and shooting late at night, these machines are extracted from their time and space, transformed into living monuments. Each frame takes up to forty minutes to shoot, as the two physically move throughout the frame, creating a continuous motion that adds to the final image. This effectively makes them an unseen element in the photograph, blurring the boundaries between the photographer and subject. Their technique turns these corroded devices into powerful symbols of past progress and present decay, inviting viewers to reflect on the transient nature of technology and the beauty of the derelict. 

 

Faded Glory 

Hercules is probably the most magnificent machine we came across on our journey. As artists, we were fortunate to capture and photograph it, just before it was taken for demolition. We will never forget this moment: late at night, we entered the forest and met the metal chariot. It was like meeting a powerful yet old and wounded animal, now abandoned and forsaken. Its wings, once 

fit for long-haul flights, are now worn and tired, reminiscent of an ageing bird in its final days. 

Through the lens, the image is frozen as a moment in eternity, unfolding the tragic narrative of faded glory. The relentless march of time has rendered the height of innovation obsolete. Its brilliance has been cloaked by the ever-encroaching darkness. The airplane, once a symbol of human achievement, has now succumbed to the merciless hands of decomposition. 

Hercules remains trapped in a liminal space – a bridge between the past and the present. In the photograph, it becomes more than a decaying piece of metal. Its broken appearance whispers a tale of faded splendor and inscribes itself with forgotten stories and fragmented memories. 

 

Nati Hoki 

Nati Hoki collaborates with his artistic partner Tom Ariel. Both draw strength and autonomy from their encounters. Each interaction with the environment serves as a juncture of artistic possibilities that they explore together. 

 

Rest in Its Stillness 

The nocturnal photograph caught my eye and transported me to the past. Is this plane the one from Nahshon Junction? I don’t remember our first encounter, but I’ve returned to it again and again since. During reserve service in the south, on breaks, I would turn my car to the field and drive all the way up to it. To rest. Something about its quietness, its stillness, its nowhereness, would bring me tranquility. I read Stephen Gould’s The Mismeasure of Man in its shade. And there were times when I would take the kids to the airplane and imagine its last days with them. How did this flying beast find its way to a field in the middle of nowhere near Nahshon Junction? And perhaps this is not the same airplane? Does it matter? 

 

Gad Yair 

Prof. Gad Yair is an Israeli writer and sociologist, former head of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology and director of the NCJW Research Center for Innovation in Education at the Hebrew University.  His research focuses on the sociology of education, sociological theory, and sociology of science at the Hebrew University.