"Year Of The Almond" By Yehudis Barmatz Harris (Photo Essay)

By BJLIfe/Sharon Altshul
Posted on 05/28/23

Jerusalem, Israel - May 28, 2023 - Imagine walking into an art gallery or a museum and encountering a captivating artwork that surrounds you with sights, sounds, and interactive elements. That's the realm of a new media installation artist who blends technology, such as computers and projectors, with traditional art forms to create immersive and thought-provoking experiences.

Instead of simply hanging a painting on a wall or placing a sculpture on a pedestal, new media installation artists use a combination of digital tools, multimedia elements, and physical structures to create their art.

They might project videos on walls, create interactive installations that respond to your movements, or use virtual reality to transport you to different worlds.

The beauty of their work lies in the way they merge technology and creativity, often challenging our traditional notions of what art can be. By exploring new possibilities, new media installation artists invite us to engage with art in exciting and interactive ways, allowing us to become active participants rather than passive observers.

Yehudis Barmatz Harris is one such artist. In November 2021, BJL featured her work "Hush," an installation in the old Shaare Zedek Hospital gallery for the Jerusalem Biennale.

Her current work "Year of the Almond" is one of three exhibits on display at the Jerusalem "Studio of Her Own." For a year and a half, Yehudis followed the almond's development. In the video, she reflects not only on the blossom which grows but parallels with personal family images. The floor of the exhibit room is covered with almond shells, adding a physical aspect, as one can sit and watch the 6-minute video shown on the wall.

Studio of Her Own is located in Beit Hatzayar – the Litvinovsky Painter’s House – the first center of its kind in Israel encouraging female artists. The site is a supportive space for unique, first-rate art by women. Its goal is to "encourage multicultural discourse centering on contemporary art, facilitating art-making and cross-pollination of ideas."

The exhibits rotate throughout the year. Anna Fromchenko "(No) Other Place" and Einat Amir & Avital Cnanni's "After We Left" can also be seen in the gallery until the beginning of June.