Taking a peak into visual artist, Sigalit Landau’s mind, might resemble the interior of her eclectic Tel Aviv studio–filled with random objects she’s exhibited around the world with models for future exhibits.
(Image source: portrait by Eldad Karin)
The talented artist has been involved with art since childhood, where she grew up between Jerusalem and London, studying dance and modern art. She graduated from the Rubin Academy of Music and Dance, and following her military service in the Israeli Defense Forces, enrolled in the renowned Bezalel Academy of Art and Design. It was there she developed the skills to become the highly acclaimed artist she is today.
The Wandering Jew
International buzz for Sigalit’s artwork spread and she exhibited in cities such as Paris, Budapest, Tokyo, Toronto, Sydney, Stockholm, and more. When discussing this period of her life, Landau jokingly describes herself as ‘The Wandering Jew’, moving from place to place as her art was exhibited around the world.
But what is it that makes this Israeli artist’s work so intriguing?
Dead Sea Influence
Sigalit Landau grew up gazing over the jagged hills of the Judean Desert to the Dead Sea and the distant skyline of Jordan in the background. This landscape of the Dead Sea and it’s unique beauty has followed her as a backdrop, medium, and metaphor in some of her most iconic works. The Dead Sea is not only intriguing to Landau personally, it has been a wonder to most of the world for years, and by putting a spotlight on this unique area, Landau captured the attention of the art world’s elite. As she exclaims, “Salt heals, preserves, hides, kills–this specific lake has myths and history all around its shores, stories of radicalism, Christianity, heroics, unbelievable agriculture—and it is a border as well, so the behaviour of salt and the natural environment is highly metaphoric, and keeps changing direction as I experiment.”
(Image source: www.1fmediaproject.net)
The Dead Sea sits at the lowest point on earth, -429 meters below sea-level. Unfortunately, recent decades have seen the Dead Sea permanently losing water levels at a rapid rate. Because of the Middle Eastern sun, mineral harvesting and sinkholes, the beautiful landmark is suffering irreversible damage. Sigalit Landau aimed to make art that highlights the environmental issues of the area, while also showing off the historic richness and spiritual significance of the waters.
Salt Bride
An example of one such project is Landau’s 2016 piece, ‘Salt Bride’. Using the power of natural alchemy, Landau submerged a traditional Jewish wedding gown into the depths of the Dead Sea. This natural process caused the gown to transform from a dark black color, to bright white, with salt crystals appearing over the entire dress. The finished result is a captivating, bejeweled wedding dress, standing tall in the depths of the Dead Sea waters.
(Image source: www.dornob.com)
The actual dress is a copy of the dress worn by the character of Leah in S. Ansky’s play, ‘The Dybbuk’. The play combines Jewish mysticism tales, containing strong insight into the human subconscious. To create this intricate piece, Landau immersed a dress in a sea known for causing everything to float. After overcoming the first obstacle of sinking the dress, Landau then had to figure out a way to capture the process and the finished result. Her photographer, Yotam From, needed to attach over 70 kg of weight to himself and bring high resolution campera equipment to capture a clear image in waters saturated with numerous materials that make it difficult to see under the surface. Despite these obstacles, Landau and From succeeded, and their unique crystalised dress was exhibited at Marlborough as a life-size installation, wowing audiences from across the globe.
DeadSee
Besides ‘Salt Bride’, Sigalit Landau has created many other projects surrounding the Dead Sea. In 2005, she created an 11 minute statement video titled “DeadSee”, where she is seen floating nude in the Dead Sea surrounded by a long chain of watermelons on the water’s surface. Only six copies of the film were offered for sale, with one being sold for $125,000 at a Sotheby’s auction.
(Image source: www.moma.org)
Another iconic piece was her bridge linking the Israeli and Jordanian sections of the Dead Sea. Created with mined crystals from the Dead Sea itself, Landau used the natural resources of the Dead Sea to create a physical connection, reminiscent of diamonds, given the 20 year anniversary since the peace agreement signed between Jordan and Israel in 2014.
In this video promoting her upcoming book release, Salt Years, she describes the dead sea as her studio for the past 15 years.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJEvx_pr8fM
This is where she discovered, explored, created art and made memories. Besides her powerful works on the issues surrounding the Dead Sea, her art touches on the depths of despair associated with the experience of being a woman, the Jewish experience from generation to generation and much more.