GAF 2023 | Student Leadership Team | Artists | Events | Installation Views |
STATEMENT
In Harassment on Ben Yehuda St., Kazhdan uses raw, unyielding lines to depict the nightmare of being hunted and hurt by a swarm of ghostly, occluded faces on Ben Yehuda St. This street, located in her turbulent hometown of Jerusalem, is one that Kazhdan dreads and dares not walk alone at night. The dark and brooding tones of the figures evoke a sense of impending danger, while the swirling faces represent the myriad of faces a woman may encounter in such situations: from strangers on the street to those in positions of power. Her use of raw, unstretched canvas evokes a sense of vulnerability, as if the painting itself is exposed and unprotected skin, while the thick brushstrokes create a sense of aggression. Through this work Kazhdan hopes to evoke a visceral response in the viewer to draw attention to the pervasive realities of fear and exposure that women experience daily.
BIO
Alicia Kamien Kazhdan is a multidisciplinary artist and neuroscience student at NYU Gallatin. Born and raised in Jerusalem, Kazhdan’s expressionist paintings are incubated by the grotesque and shaped by the chaotic urban environment and its kaleidoscopic inhabitants. Her works have been displayed in various galleries, including the Barbur Gallery and the HaMiffal artist collective in Jerusalem. Her experimental artistic approach includes exploring the visual dispositions and neural pathways involved in aesthetic perception. Driven by a fascination with the visual dispositions that underlie aesthetic perception, Kazhdan hopes to bring together the worlds of art and cognition in a symbiotic union.
You must be logged in to post a comment.