In mourning and solidarity with the victims in Israel: The JMB shows a video work on Kibbutz Be’eri

Hetty Berg, Director of the JMB, says: “We are horrified and enormously saddened by the cruel crimes of Hamas in Israel. These atrocities can never be justified. Our hearts and thoughts are with all those who have been affected by the terrorist attacks and all those who have friends and family in the region. We have close ties with Israel and feel the pain of everyone who is now suffering.”

The Hebrew word ‘kibbutz’ means ‘gathering’. Founded in 1946, Kibbutz Be’eri’s life is still shaped by the idea of the collective. In static and gliding shots through the exterior and interior spaces of the kibbutz, Evron and Krieger direct the viewer’s gaze to public meeting places that provide a space for the collective. These film sequences alternate with portraits of kibbutz members reciting the poem Rehearsing the Spectacle of Spectres by Anadad Eldan (b. 1924). As the ‘kibbutz poet’, Eldan writes librettos for the community’s ceremonies and he is also a published author of lyric poetry. He is known for his alliterative style and modern use of Biblical Hebrew. The members of Kibbutz Be’eri are seen in single shots and multiple layered compositions. Sometimes, only their recitation is heard in the audio track. The lines of the poem and the filmic realisation speak of the wistfulness that arises when seeking harmony between individual and community, a harmony which is difficult to achieve.

“The JMB has never implemented an exhibition idea so quickly,” says Hetty Berg. “We wanted to respond to the situation through the means of a museum. By showing the video work, we want to create a place of remembrance at the JMB that offers space to pause and reflect. At the same time, it is a response to the terror and murder: We are showing life in Kibbutz Be’eri before its destruction, a kibbutz where art was created. We want to preserve the memory of life there before the attack. The JMB is open, our program continues and we are here for our visitors.”
 

The video opens and ends with aerial shots exposing the geographical location of the kibbutz, neighboring with the Gaza Strip. In this region of political tension, many peace activists from Be’eri have worked for coexistence. They were also among those killed in the recent terrorist massacre. News media have reported over 100 deaths and an unspecified number kidnapped to Gaza. Hagay Avni ז״ל, one of the participants appearing in the film and a member of the defense unit of the kibbutz, was killed in action against Hamas. Despite their advanced age, the Eldans survived the attack. Ten years ago, Anadad Eldan wrote a poem mourning his daughter’s death, to which his wife Sari has recently brought public attention:

עַל קִירוֹת בְּאֵרִי

עַל קִירוֹת בְּאֵרִי כָּתַבְתִּי קוֹרוֹתֶיהָ

מִמְּקוֹרוֹת וּמַעֲמַקִּים קְרוּעֵי קֹר

עֵת קָרְאוּ אֶת הַקּוֹרֶה בַּכְּאֵב וְאוֹרוֹתֶיהָ

נָפְלוּ לַעֲרָפֶל וַאֲפִלַּת לַיְלָה וִילָלָה כְּמָקוֹר

לַתְּפִלָּה כִּי נָפְלוּ יְלָדֶיהָ וְדֶלֶת נְעוּלָה

לְרַחֲמֵי שָׁמַיִם נוֹשְׁמִים שְׁמָמָה וּשְׁכוֹל

הוֹרִים לְלֹא רַחֲמִים מִי יְנַחֵם כִּי קְלָלָה

לוֹחֶשֶׁת אַל טַל וּמָטָר וּמֻתָּר לִבְכּוֹת לְמִי שֶׁיָּכוֹל

יֵשׁ שָׁעָה רוֹחֶשֶׁת חֹשֶׁךְ אַךְ יֵשׁ שַׁחַר וְהִלָּהּ

On Be’eri’s Walls [On the Walls of my Well]

On Be’eri’s walls I wrote her story

from origins and depths wrenched from the cold

they now read what happened in pain and her light

that fell into the mist and darkness of night and a primeval cry

for a prayer, her children have fallen and a door is locked

for the grace of heaven they breathe desolation and sorrow

Who will comfort inconsolable parents, for a curse

whispers may you have neither dew nor rain and whoever is able may weep

There is an hour when darkness roars, but there is dawn and radiance

בחזרה על מחזה החזיונות (Rehearsing the Spectacle of Spectres)

Nir Evron, Omer Krieger

2014, HD video with stereo sound, 10 min., Hebrew with English subtitles



Commissioned by Kibbutz Be’eri Gallery

Poem by Anadad Eldan; English Translation: Robert Whitehill-Bashan; German Translation: Jan Kühne

Participants: Hagay Avni ז״ל, Carmit Dvori, Anadad Eldan, Marcel Visel, Asaf Weiss, Ziva Yellin

Cinematography: Yair Agmon

Sound Design: Binya Reches

Digital Compositing: Ido Shor

For the latest information on the video and further information, visit the website: https://www.jmberlin.de/en/exhibition-rehearsing-the-spectacle-of-spectres