Group exhibition
Ossie Veld, Dotan Moreno, Daniel Swed, Yair Harel, Yali Herbet,
Yael Reisfeld, Mariana Raskin, Neta Cohen, Emmanuel Zilbarshnir
Ramat Ha'sharon POST Gallery 2024
The artist Avner Katz (1939-2020) who lived and worked in Ramat Hasharon, created simultaneously in the fields of art, illustration, design, writing and teaching, and left his mark in each and every one of them. When he was only 16 years old, he began his studies in the department of applied graphics in Bezalel, and over the years he became one of the most prominent Israeli illustrators. He illustrated more than 200 books, written by many writers, and won the Israel Museum prize for children's book illustration several times.
Katz, who loved to illustrate animals, in 2016 illustrated "Carnival of the Animals", an artist's book in 2016 at the Jerusalem print workshop, containing 14 sketches accompanied by 14 rhyming poems by Yaron London, to the musical work of Cami Saint-Sanans. However, etching is only one of the mediums in which he worked: Katz was a virtuoso and mastered optimally any medium he chose to engage in.
Unlike their illustrators with an identifiable line and style, Katz juggled through a wide range of techniques and styles, until the 50 animal illustrations that are shown in the exhibition compare it to the character of a group exhibition, and not a solo exhibition of a master of illustration. The use of various techniques - including ink, water colors, colored pencils and acrylic paints - as well as the separation of the illustrations from the narrative context, adds depth and dimension, and manages to capture the essence of the characters and characterize them, through light lines full of emotion and movement.
Looking at the animal illustrations, which were mostly illustrated for children's books for four decades (1966-2016), one can detect warmth, playfulness and even compassion towards the subjects of the illustration: a unique combination of human gestures and animal charm. Thus, Katz creates a bridge between the worlds of children and adults; An intergenerational connection.
The exhibition invites visitors to become familiar with part of Katz's archive, and to get a glimpse of his work process. In the outdoor gallery, 50 illustrations and illustrated sketches are displayed, which illustrate the wide range of styles in which he worked. In the space of the Post Gallery, nine leading artists and animation artists - Ossie Veld, Dotan Moreno, Daniel Swed, Yair Harel, Yali Herbet, Yael Reisfeld, Mariana Raskin, Neta Cohen, Emmanuel Zilbarshnir - present their artistic and animated interpretation of nine of the animal illustrations displayed on the avenue.
And this is how Avner Katz's carnival of animals comes to life.
Curators:
Inbal Reuven, Yuval Saar
Graphic design: Inbal Reuven
Sound Design: Nir Jacob Younessi