Facts on the Ground by Shimon Attie

If you’re a local or planning to visit New York between 28^th of April and the 4^th of June, you shouldn’t miss the opportunity to see Shimon Attie‘s sixth solo exhibition at the Jack Shainman Gallery. The artist’s work can be found at MoMA, New York, Centre George Pompidou, Paris, or in the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., among many others public spaces.

Born in 1957 in Los Angeles, Shimon Attie now lives and works in New York. His work spans across two decades, but a desire to explore the relationship between place, time, and identity links most of his projects, whether they are photographs, video, or installations. The artist’s work is often site-specific and the “Facts on the Ground” exhibition is no exception. The photographs are taken in 2014 across Israel and Palestine and they depict public spaces with deep significance, whether it’s the separation wall or a bombed village left in ruins since the 1948 war. Custom light boxes appear in the landscape, featuring illuminated words at night and dusk or black and white text during the day. Some of the words are specifically chosen from the history of Zionism, others are poetic, while some are though-provoking or even subtly ironic. A layer of ambiguity rests upon the photographs, allowing the viewer to interpret them in various ways, from a psychological, social, or political point of view, but each image offers an opportunity for reflection. It’s an immersive experience that takes the visitors through an intellectual journey. To see the exhibition, pop into the gallery from Tuesday to Saturday, between 10am to 6pm. Images courtesy of Jack Shainman Gallery.