Familiar is a photographic body of work that deals with memory and the loss of one’s identity in the process of forming another. I decided to aim my camera towards my grandmothers, both of whom immigrated to Israel and formed a new identity in a foreign country. While I myself immigrated to Germany, I now relate differently to their stories. While photographing during these visits I found myself attempting to illustrate the longing for a time in the past that no longer exists and the realisation that things have changed. The tension between nostalgia and fear is what drove me to make this work.
*Anemoia- The feeling of nostalgia for a time that you never experienced.
Anemoia is a project that deals with nostalgia, the one I experienced myself and the one that I experienced through Fidor, a Polish soldier, whose photographs I found in a flea market in the city where my father was born in Poland. Whilst looking at the photographs I reflected on my own service in the army and with the help of my ‘Facebook’ photo archive, I compared the lives of soldiers in different countries and was able to find some surprising matches. Anemoia is a mixed media project that consists of found images from the market and the web, alongside photographs I made both in Israel and Poland, and citations from L.P Hartley’s “The Go Between”.
The bridal shops in Neukölln have interested me ever since I moved into the neighbourhood. The display windows are constructed with so many details and colors. Every window contains a whole story and at night time, when the shops are closed for the day and the lights go on, the mannequins come to life.
I find it quite funny that the time that the shop are the most attractive, they are closed. They are not so dominant during the day. One could walk past the shop and completely ignore it, since the street itself is so distracting. When the sun sets, the streets become empty and the contrast between the typical street and the majestic scenes happening in the bridals shops display windows is extremely strong. For that reason they are so attractive.
It seems like the shop owners are trying to sell us some sort of fantasy, full of colors, customised to your deep desires and physical measurements. That “special day” you always dreamed of is within reach- all you need to do is walk in.
What drew me to photograph demonstrations in Berlin is the opportunity to learn about what people feel, and their need to express it in the streets, loudly and together. I find great photographic potential in this kind of environment, allowing myself to weave in and out of the marching crowd, documenting it from within and as an outsider. Trying to learn and understand the causes people are marching for. I study by observing this method of expression. I find the large mass of people uniting for the same cause creates an incredible energy that I try to capture in my photographs. I find myself drawn to demonstrations that challenge my own identity and preconceptions.
To me this project is a photographic study of a city through its demonstrations and a documentation of my own journey in understanding my place in society. Much of my work could be characterised as being a blend of fine art photography and photojournalism, taking a critical view on social, political and cultural issues often related to my history and origins, my past and my present.
