I often refer to my art as unorthodox. Coming from a background in fashion photography I felt limited by the parameters of the industry. However, these restrictions helped me push my practise and find loopholes to create work which felt truer to myself and the way I view the world.
If you’re looking for the roots of my work, you’ll find that they stem from Judaism. I use art to document and understand my Jewish identity. Mediums such as photography, sculpture, moving image and conceptual art help me express topics like antisemitism and what it means to be a Jewish woman. Being Jewish is complex as it crosses the border of religion/race and is why I use multiple mediums to communicate my ideas.
The mundane and overlooked entities also heavily inform my work. These themes allow me to talk about what art can be, and how using formal composition and by paying attention to lighting you can make a bin bag look beautiful. Elliot Erwitt says, “To me, photography is an art of observation. It’s about finding something interesting in an ordinary place…. I’ve found it has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them”, which I feel is very relevant to my work and how I decide what to photograph.
I often describe my work as a wrong turn in the right direction. I am drawn to creating pairings between entities that don’t belong together. By exploring technology, I have found that programs such as CAPTCHA and Google Earth, contain accidental forms of photography. It wasn’t intended to be art, yet it can be.
A new avenue I have realised informs my work, is humour. I tend to lean towards making art which has a humorous undertone. Comedy works when dealing with heavy subjects like identity, as well as my focus on everyday objects and our interactions with them.
Symbolism is also key within my work. These include Jewish symbols, as well as the number seven. The number seven, although an obvious number to draw attention, holds many personal sentiments to me, and reoccurs throughout my work. There is also a strong link between the number seven and Judaism, for example its relevance in Kabbalah art and religious holidays.