Naama Tsabar Work | Artist Statement & CV | Return to Artist List
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Artist Statement
It is the show behind the curtain that fascinate me: the rubber floor mats, gaffer tape, speakers, shelves, alcohol, bed sheets, instruments and storage spaces.
Playing in a band, performing in small crowded venues and bar tending - I have experienced these venues at their extremes and from both sides. In my art I go back to such experiences to investigate the inert structures and tools that support these emotionally charged spaces, such as in ‘Encore’ (2007) where the gaffers tape and the stabling action cocooned the stage and turned the tape into the show itself, or in ‘Twilight (Drum Case)’ (2006) where incasing a whole drum set into an instrument case grew to such a size that it rendered the case unusable, transforming it into a giant stage, substituting a backstage functionality with a performative, frontstage one.
I employ triggers such as smells, sounds and materials to evoke and unleash a twilight zone that’s between personal and public memory,With in this zone I explore overwhelming states of invasion, transgression and deviation, as in ‘Untitled’ (2009) where I used hundreds of black rubber mats, the kind used in kitchens and bar floors, forming an industrial earth work, taking over the museum floor.
In the case of ‘Untitled (Speaker Wall)’ (2010), and ‘Sweat’ (2010), I explored structures that embody a liminal state characterized by the tension between the visible dimension of excess and the material’s powerfully internal order.
In ‘Untitled (Speaker Wall)’ the home bookshelf speakers are stacked on top of each other forming a small wall. Its back side turned into an instrument - it becomes a speaker that amplifies its own self - and therefore constantly feedbacking its own paradoxical existence.
In ‘Sweat’ (2010), an elaborate maze of bed sheets are inserted into full liquor bottles, the sheets connect one bottle to its pair by moving horizontally in the inner space of the shelves.
As time passes, the liquor in the bottles is absorbed by the sheets and wood, The installation’s “guts” are revealed through the swelling of the shelves, the absorbing action of the wood, the opening of the seams, the movement of the alcohol.
‘Sweat’ penetrates the rigid Minimal form with the smell of fermented yeast, of alcohol, the loosening of materiality, the soft nature of the sheets, the bubbling and warping of the wood, the specificity of the Molotov image, of the liquor bottles.
Through my installations I attempt to insert into the minimal a content of gender, sexuality, politics, personal narrative and public spaces.
It is the show behind the curtain that fascinate me: the rubber floor mats, gaffer tape, speakers, shelves, alcohol, bed sheets, instruments and storage spaces.
Playing in a band, performing in small crowded venues and bar tending - I have experienced these venues at their extremes and from both sides. In my art I go back to such experiences to investigate the inert structures and tools that support these emotionally charged spaces, such as in ‘Encore’ (2007) where the gaffers tape and the stabling action cocooned the stage and turned the tape into the show itself, or in ‘Twilight (Drum Case)’ (2006) where incasing a whole drum set into an instrument case grew to such a size that it rendered the case unusable, transforming it into a giant stage, substituting a backstage functionality with a performative, frontstage one.
I employ triggers such as smells, sounds and materials to evoke and unleash a twilight zone that’s between personal and public memory,With in this zone I explore overwhelming states of invasion, transgression and deviation, as in ‘Untitled’ (2009) where I used hundreds of black rubber mats, the kind used in kitchens and bar floors, forming an industrial earth work, taking over the museum floor.
In the case of ‘Untitled (Speaker Wall)’ (2010), and ‘Sweat’ (2010), I explored structures that embody a liminal state characterized by the tension between the visible dimension of excess and the material’s powerfully internal order.
In ‘Untitled (Speaker Wall)’ the home bookshelf speakers are stacked on top of each other forming a small wall. Its back side turned into an instrument - it becomes a speaker that amplifies its own self - and therefore constantly feedbacking its own paradoxical existence.
In ‘Sweat’ (2010), an elaborate maze of bed sheets are inserted into full liquor bottles, the sheets connect one bottle to its pair by moving horizontally in the inner space of the shelves.
As time passes, the liquor in the bottles is absorbed by the sheets and wood, The installation’s “guts” are revealed through the swelling of the shelves, the absorbing action of the wood, the opening of the seams, the movement of the alcohol.
‘Sweat’ penetrates the rigid Minimal form with the smell of fermented yeast, of alcohol, the loosening of materiality, the soft nature of the sheets, the bubbling and warping of the wood, the specificity of the Molotov image, of the liquor bottles.
Through my installations I attempt to insert into the minimal a content of gender, sexuality, politics, personal narrative and public spaces.
CV
Education:
2010 MFA Columbia University School of the Arts, New York.
2004 B.Ed “Hamidrasha” School of Arts, Beit-Berl, Israel.
Solo Exhibitions:
2010 ‘Sweat’, Tel Aviv Museum of Art – The Nathan Gottesdiener Foundation finalists, Tel Aviv.
2008 ‘Night Falls’, Pianissimo Gallery, Milan, Italy.
2007 ‘Encore’, Art statements, Art Basel 38, Switzerland.
2007 ‘Encore’, Dvir Gallery, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
2006 ‘Twilight’, Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art, Herzliya, Israel.
Group Exhibitions:
2010
‘Greater New York’, curated by klaus Biesenbach, Connie Butler, Neville Wakefield, P.S.1,New York.
‘The Young Israelis’, Curated by Lilly Wei, Leslley Heller Workspace, New York.
‘MFA thesis show’, Columbia University, Fisher Landau Center, Long Island City, New York.
‘JaffaCakes TLV’, curated by Yasmine Datnow, Maïa Morgensztern,Lara Wolfe,33-34 Hoxton Square, London.
‘Never Can Say Goodbye (No Longer empty)’, curated by Manon Slome, Steven Evans, Asher Remy-Toledo, Former tower Records, NYC.
‘A-genre’, curated by Yair and Hila Vardi, Tmuna theatre, Tel-Aviv.
2009
‘History of Violence’, curated by Hadas Maor, Haifa Museum of Art, Israel.
‘Sweat(1)’, Focus - Artforum, Berlin, Germany.
‘Dark Rooms/Homme Made’, curated by Avi Feldman, Daneyal Mahmood Gallery, New York.
‘Now Silence’, Gallery 39, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
‘Become a Member’, Spaceship Gallery, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
2008
‘A New Way of Seeing’ ,Städtische galerie, Bremen, Germany.
‘The Bucharest Biennale for Young Artists’, curated by Ami Barak, Romania.
‘Art Focus’, curated by Ami Barak and Bernard Blistene, Jerusalem, Israel.
‘Volume(s)’, curated by Marc Clement and Kevin Muhlen, Casino Luxembourg, Luxembourg.
2007
Dvir Gallery, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
‘Passing the Batonette’, Haifa Museum, Israel.
2006
‘Artik 8’, The University gallery of Tel-Aviv, Israel.
2005
‘3 Cities Against the Wall’, ABC No Rio, New York.
‘3 Cities Against the Wall’, ABC No Rio, Al Hallaj gallery, Ramallah.
‘3 Cities Against the Wall’, ABC No Rio, Artist House, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
‘League’, Hanger 26, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
‘2005’, Gordon gallery, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
2004
‘More Then This’, Sommer gallery, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
Projects:
2009 ‘Composition 8’, performance for 8 musicians at X Initiative, New York.
2008 ‘Composition 24’, performance for 24 musicians, Art Focus, Jerusalem, Israel.
2006 ‘Did You Pack Alone?’, Stage design for Yair Vardi, Ako Festival, Israel.
2006 ‘Composition 24’, performance for 24 musicians, Herzilyia Museum of Contemporary Art, Israel.
Awards and Grants:
2009-2010 Joan Sovern Award, Columbia University, New York.
2008-2010 Artis Fellowship, Columbia University, New York.
2009-2010 America-Israel Cultural Foundation.
2006-2005 America-Israel Cultural Foundation.
2004 The Gordon Gallery Grant.
2002-2005 The Israeli Ministry of Education Outstanding Achievement Award.
Selected Press:
2010
‘Take Me Out to the Big Show in Queens’, New York Times, May 28, on page C21, By Roberta Smith.
‘The New York Five, New York Magazine’, May 16th, by Rachel Wolff.
‘The Lesser Greater in the Haus of Klaus’, Miami Art Exchange, May 26th, by Steven Kaplan.
‘Greater New York Review Part II’, Art Review Online, June, By David Everitt Howe.
‘Freedom’s Just Another Word’, Programma Magazine, spring, By Jon Kessler.
‘London Highlights’, Saatchi online magazine, May, by Paul Cary Kent.
‘Naama Tsabar’, Haaretz, March 16th, by Ellie Armon.
‘Noisy’, Shiva Lylot - Yediot Achronot, Apr. 9th, by Vardit Gross.
2009
‘Blood and Sweat’, Other Ground New York online, Dec. 15th, by Shirine Saad.
‘MFA students push the boundaries of mixed media’, Columbia Spectator, Apr. 12th, by Elyssa Goldberg.
‘Eyes to Listen’, Haaretz, by Ozi Zur,
2008
‘Naama Tsabar’, Artforum Picks, November, by Cecilia Alemani.
Block Magazine, #05
‘Die Schatten des Morgens - “Neues Sehen”’, Kreiszeitung Syke, Nov. 28th, by Rainer Beßling
2007
‘Naama Tsabar’, Timeout Tel Aviv, Mar. 1st, by Galia Yahav.
‘With One Eye Closed’, Haaretz, Mar. 9th, by Ozi Zur.
2006
‘The declaration of Independence’, Maariv, Nov. 17th, by Yoni Smash.
‘Super Group’, Globes, Sep. 25th, by Eitan Buganim.
‘Its Not the Sound’, Yediot Achronot, Sep. 14th, by Tali Cohen Garbuz.
Education:
2010 MFA Columbia University School of the Arts, New York.
2004 B.Ed “Hamidrasha” School of Arts, Beit-Berl, Israel.
Solo Exhibitions:
2010 ‘Sweat’, Tel Aviv Museum of Art – The Nathan Gottesdiener Foundation finalists, Tel Aviv.
2008 ‘Night Falls’, Pianissimo Gallery, Milan, Italy.
2007 ‘Encore’, Art statements, Art Basel 38, Switzerland.
2007 ‘Encore’, Dvir Gallery, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
2006 ‘Twilight’, Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art, Herzliya, Israel.
Group Exhibitions:
2010
‘Greater New York’, curated by klaus Biesenbach, Connie Butler, Neville Wakefield, P.S.1,New York.
‘The Young Israelis’, Curated by Lilly Wei, Leslley Heller Workspace, New York.
‘MFA thesis show’, Columbia University, Fisher Landau Center, Long Island City, New York.
‘JaffaCakes TLV’, curated by Yasmine Datnow, Maïa Morgensztern,Lara Wolfe,33-34 Hoxton Square, London.
‘Never Can Say Goodbye (No Longer empty)’, curated by Manon Slome, Steven Evans, Asher Remy-Toledo, Former tower Records, NYC.
‘A-genre’, curated by Yair and Hila Vardi, Tmuna theatre, Tel-Aviv.
2009
‘History of Violence’, curated by Hadas Maor, Haifa Museum of Art, Israel.
‘Sweat(1)’, Focus - Artforum, Berlin, Germany.
‘Dark Rooms/Homme Made’, curated by Avi Feldman, Daneyal Mahmood Gallery, New York.
‘Now Silence’, Gallery 39, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
‘Become a Member’, Spaceship Gallery, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
2008
‘A New Way of Seeing’ ,Städtische galerie, Bremen, Germany.
‘The Bucharest Biennale for Young Artists’, curated by Ami Barak, Romania.
‘Art Focus’, curated by Ami Barak and Bernard Blistene, Jerusalem, Israel.
‘Volume(s)’, curated by Marc Clement and Kevin Muhlen, Casino Luxembourg, Luxembourg.
2007
Dvir Gallery, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
‘Passing the Batonette’, Haifa Museum, Israel.
2006
‘Artik 8’, The University gallery of Tel-Aviv, Israel.
2005
‘3 Cities Against the Wall’, ABC No Rio, New York.
‘3 Cities Against the Wall’, ABC No Rio, Al Hallaj gallery, Ramallah.
‘3 Cities Against the Wall’, ABC No Rio, Artist House, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
‘League’, Hanger 26, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
‘2005’, Gordon gallery, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
2004
‘More Then This’, Sommer gallery, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
Projects:
2009 ‘Composition 8’, performance for 8 musicians at X Initiative, New York.
2008 ‘Composition 24’, performance for 24 musicians, Art Focus, Jerusalem, Israel.
2006 ‘Did You Pack Alone?’, Stage design for Yair Vardi, Ako Festival, Israel.
2006 ‘Composition 24’, performance for 24 musicians, Herzilyia Museum of Contemporary Art, Israel.
Awards and Grants:
2009-2010 Joan Sovern Award, Columbia University, New York.
2008-2010 Artis Fellowship, Columbia University, New York.
2009-2010 America-Israel Cultural Foundation.
2006-2005 America-Israel Cultural Foundation.
2004 The Gordon Gallery Grant.
2002-2005 The Israeli Ministry of Education Outstanding Achievement Award.
Selected Press:
2010
‘Take Me Out to the Big Show in Queens’, New York Times, May 28, on page C21, By Roberta Smith.
‘The New York Five, New York Magazine’, May 16th, by Rachel Wolff.
‘The Lesser Greater in the Haus of Klaus’, Miami Art Exchange, May 26th, by Steven Kaplan.
‘Greater New York Review Part II’, Art Review Online, June, By David Everitt Howe.
‘Freedom’s Just Another Word’, Programma Magazine, spring, By Jon Kessler.
‘London Highlights’, Saatchi online magazine, May, by Paul Cary Kent.
‘Naama Tsabar’, Haaretz, March 16th, by Ellie Armon.
‘Noisy’, Shiva Lylot - Yediot Achronot, Apr. 9th, by Vardit Gross.
2009
‘Blood and Sweat’, Other Ground New York online, Dec. 15th, by Shirine Saad.
‘MFA students push the boundaries of mixed media’, Columbia Spectator, Apr. 12th, by Elyssa Goldberg.
‘Eyes to Listen’, Haaretz, by Ozi Zur,
2008
‘Naama Tsabar’, Artforum Picks, November, by Cecilia Alemani.
Block Magazine, #05
‘Die Schatten des Morgens - “Neues Sehen”’, Kreiszeitung Syke, Nov. 28th, by Rainer Beßling
2007
‘Naama Tsabar’, Timeout Tel Aviv, Mar. 1st, by Galia Yahav.
‘With One Eye Closed’, Haaretz, Mar. 9th, by Ozi Zur.
2006
‘The declaration of Independence’, Maariv, Nov. 17th, by Yoni Smash.
‘Super Group’, Globes, Sep. 25th, by Eitan Buganim.
‘Its Not the Sound’, Yediot Achronot, Sep. 14th, by Tali Cohen Garbuz.
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Untitled (Speaker Wall 1), View of Instrument side, Bookshelf speakers, music wire, guitar pickups, Mini amps,guitar machine heads, brass, 98.5’‘x52.2’‘x7.5’‘, 2010
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Untitled (Speaker Wall 1), Detail, Bookshelf speakers, music wire, guitar pickups, Mini amps,guitar machine heads, brass, 2010
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Untitled (Speaker Wall 2), View of speaker side, Bookshelf speakers, music wire, guitar pickups, Mini amps,guitar machine heads, brass, 80.7’‘x57.9’‘x7.5’‘, 2010
Untitled (Speaker Wall 1+2), Installation view with two speaker walls (instrument side), Bookshelf speakers, music wire, guitar pickups, Mini amps,guitar machine heads, brass, 2010
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Doublesilverburst, Guitars, metal, fiberglass, 11.8’‘x68.9’‘x13.7’‘, 2010
Performance on Double guitar instrument (Doublecherryburst), Guitars, metal, fiberglass, 2010
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Twilight (Drum Case), Installation View, Mixed media installation with drum set and glass, 82.6’‘x118’‘x236’‘, 2006
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Twilight (Drum Case), Detail, 2006
Twilight (Drum Sticks), Glass, drum head, 15.7’‘x15.7’‘, 2006
Encore, Installation view, Gaffers tape, paper, glue, metal, 82.7’‘x157.5’‘x126’‘, 2007
Encore, Detail, Gaffers tape, paper, glue, metal, 82.7’‘x157.5’‘x126’‘, 2007
Encore, Gaffers tape, paper, glue, metal, 82.7’‘x157.5’‘x126’‘, 2007
Untitled, Rubber anti fatigue floor mats, cable ties, Variable, 2009
Untitled, Rubber anti fatigue floor mats, cable ties, Variable, 2009
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Untitled, Installation View, Rubber anti fatigue floor mats, cable ties, Variable, 2009
Sweat, Image from first days of exhibition, Liquor Bottles, bed sheets, shelves, Variable, 2010
Sweat, Detail image from initial days of exhibition, Liquor Bottles, bed sheets, shelves, Variable, 2010
Sweat, Detail image mid way through the exhibition, Liquor Bottles, bed sheets, shelves, Variable, 2010
Sweat, Detail image from last days of exhibition, Liquor Bottles, bed sheets, shelves, Variable, 2010
Sweat,Installation view from initial days of exhibition, Liquor Bottles, bed sheets, shelves, Variable, 2010