Space is the ultimate playground. In it, I have invented a new form of fun - Space-surfing. Children enjoy a feeling of zero gravity, hovering around the Moon, flying next to symbols of technology – spaceships and satellites.

These works are meant to convey a feeling of weightlessness, of playfulness, of freedom. The titles further emphasize the theme of the content and creation process – "Moon surfing", "Playing with Gravity", and "Weightless fun".

The technique I used also reflects a combination of playing around with materials, images, surfaces, transparencies, markers and technology. The backdrops of the works are pages from an old book about Space. On the book page, I placed painted transparencies with colored images of children. These, in turn, are based on photos of my own daughter I took with my new 48MBs Smartphone camera. Lastly, I arrange the materials in a household scanner to give life to the final collages.


Weightless Fun

For quite some time, I have been painting trees and forests as background for the characters in my works, such as Little red riding hood and my childhood self. Through the years I have slowly realized that the forest and the trees can function as the main characters too. My trees might seem similar to one another at first glance, but when examined more deeply, each one is unique.

In the Woods

This is an ongoing series of Sunprints - new works made during lockdowns because of Covid19.

These are images of cacti and wandering jew plants I grow on my terrace and print on photographic paper. I create these works by exposing photosensitive paper to the sun light. For me, the unexpected results are the most exciting part of the process.

In my work, I am in constant search for surprises, mistakes that make the work open to interpretation.

Sunprints

Paula's project at GlogauAIR deals with the dialectics of memory and loss, hope and kindness. Intentionally juxtaposing two vividly distinct German narratives, Paula contrasts the tragic figure of Magda Goebbels, who embodied the perfect Aryan beauty, loyalty, and motherhood during Nazi dictatorship with a group of refugees in Kassel today, and their new life in a democratic Germany. From darkness and horror to a more promising present and future, two very different realities from very different periods of time collide.

Justin Ross
Glogauair, Berlin 2019


Glogauair Residency, Berlin 2019


"Refuge/Zuflucht", 183x28cm, pigments on cloth, 2019. 
   
This work was created in Berlin in the Summer of 2019, during my artist residency at Glogauair. Trees I have been drawing for years - idyllic beautiful nature, hiding place, refuge for those in need to escape. Time and context charge the woods with different meanings.

Dreamy images of my fourth birthday party in the "absorption center" (merkaz klita) in Haifa, Israel (that short but meaningful period) and in Argentina with the city cathedral as background. Glimpses of my own story combined with figures of refugees I met in Kassel. We are all trying to build a new life. "Zuflucht" is the name of the coffee place these immigrants meet with local Germans who help them integrate in the best way possible. 


Refuge

The cactus – "sabra" in Spanish, my mother tongue, צבר ("tzabar") in Hebrew and "sa-br" in Arabic – is a plant originally from Mexico, very important in both Israeli and Palestinian cultures. "Sa-br" in Arabic means patience. 
In my friend Lubna's words: "The "sa-br" is important for the Palestinian heritage because it has been used as a fence in houses and its fruit has also been used as source of income… The sa-br is considered a symbol of protection and patience because it grows its roots anywhere and effortlessly, and the Palestinian people can be described like the sa-br." 
While the cactus is symbol of resilience and patience for the Palestinians, for many years it has also been related to a typical Israeli - spiky outside and sweet inside. Of course, these are stereotypes. 
This series explores issues of identity, locality, resilience, home. 


Sabra - Ongoing project - 2020/21

This series of collages and prints was exhibited in Berlin in 2019 in a solo exhibtion at Fausto's place.
It explores the issue of being an immigrant or refugee.
The images are based on family albums and urban scenery.
Materials used include letters in foreign languages, drawings on glass and transparent sheets, scanned photos.

Inmigrante - Migrante - Emigrante - Refugiado

"Corona times"

Being at home without having the possibility of meeting other people, going to places and social distancing has made me take the time to look from the windows of my home and from our terrace for longer hours. I had the opportunity to observe and discover buildings, birds, trees and neighbors I hadn't noticed before. I took photos, drew on glass and arranged the images in photo collages. I have also used old books and transparencies I placed on a scanner to obtain the final image.

Lastly, I created a short video stream of the images, with a recording of my stream of thoughts. It is recorded in Hebrew - although my mother tongue is Spanish. There are English captions.

Taking Time 

DINNER IS READY / MISE EN SCÈNE

About the exhibition:

The artists Liliana Orbach and Paula Elion randomize evil and trauma in their works in a different manner, almost contradictory language and approach, which joint to form a dissonance on the one hand, and on the other, an embrace in the context of language, conflict, coincidence, fate, creation and creativity.

Nir Harmat - Curator

DINNER IS READY / MISE EN SCÈNE

Selected works from the series Brokeback Mountain

One of my early series in which I used cloth, pigments, pages of old books, images from the movie Brokeback Mountain (Ang Lee)


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Paula Elion