Chelouche gallery is pleased to announce the opening of a new solo exhibition by the
artist Uri Gershuni: ‘Thus Far Shall You Come’, and to introduce a new artist residency in old Jaffa, where Israeli artists (Jews and Arabs), as well as international artists, will work side-by-side.
In this retrospective exhibition Uri Gershuni exhibits a hundred works from the last twenty years. These, present his choice to “stop a moment, stand in place and observe the footprints he has left behind.” This choice conveys the artist’s dialogue with his autobiographical, familial past, as well as his
dialogue with the historical roots of his chosen medium, photography. The artist’s mastery of photographic language and tools allows him to expand, time and again, the medium’s boundaries. His work deals with the border separating truth from fiction, the historical shift from analogical to digital photography and the gap between those two methods, the dialogue between photography and painting, and spirit versus matter. Gershuni’s work is immersed in the history of photography and of art, and the passing of time has become a central concept in his work.
The name of the exhibition, ‘Thus far shall you come’, is a partial quote taken from the Book of Job, 38:11: “And said, hitherto shalt thou come, but no further: and here shall thy proud waves be stayed”
This exhibition launches Chelouche Gallery’s new project: an artist residency in Jaffa’s Old City; A beautiful building overlooking the Mediterranean, comprising of seven spaces for work, hospitality and residence, which will serve as a home for the joint work of Israeli artists – Jews and Arabs – and international artists. The residency program is designed to support artists through an envelope that includes funding of stay, a project production budget, enrichment workshops for professional development, and guidance and counseling by a curatorial team. It is the first program in the country done in such a scale, guided by a holistic worldview that aims to contribute to both artists and the community.
The residency program will, in addition, include cooperation with neighboring Chelouche Gallery through varied exhibitions, including exhibitions by residency artists. Chelouche Gallery will be re-opened in a new building, a breath-taking Ottoman structure (dated 1850), located in 15 Hazorfim street, Jaffa. A holistic vision of art and culture has always been the guiding principle of Nira Itzhaki, the owner of Chelouche Gallery. That vision has led her to relocate from Tel Aviv center to Jaffa, to
establish an artist residency and to found a gallery space. The aim is to turn Old Jaffa into a center for young and vibrant contemporary art, to frequently attract a culture-loving audience, to offer interest to
passers-by on the streets, and to provide a platform for exciting and innovating projects from Israel and abroad.
