Tranquillity with chaos

An exhibit of Nomi Kaplan's work is on display at JCC.

Nomi Kaplan's photocollages in her current exhibit, Off the Wall, reflect the concerns of a changing world – poverty, racism, politics and sexuality. From the innocence of a bird to the horrors of war, the artist plays with images in her world and incorporates them into photos of walls on 4th Street in Manhattan, walls plastered with posters.

Kaplan has an ongoing fascination with the walls that she photographed in 1991 when she lived in New York.

"One day in 1991, the year that I lived on 4th Street in Manhattan, I took a walk with my camera and photographed these amazing walls. They served as free 'billboards' where, over the years, people pasted posters and signs on top of other messages, building thick layers of history. When I examined my photographs of these walls, I realized that I wanted to add my own layers, using the photocollage technique. I have been exploring the creative possibilities of this work ever since," said Kaplan.

"The idea of posting notices on a wall is an ancient practice that goes back to the beginning of time, to caves. It's like a proclamation," she said. "You're proclaiming events on walls using free space. You have a moment of space for your message and then it's gone and somebody else takes it over."

Kaplan hijacks these messages and adds her own, giving them a permanence, capturing them forever.

"The bird is the absolute last possible thing that you would find on 4th Street in Manhattan or on a wall. It's not its habitat; to put a bird on the wall is trickery, so far flung from what walls plastered with notices and posters are," she said.

Still inspired by these walls, Kaplan has recently added 10 new works to her collection; four referring to the ongoing Middle East conflict.

"The art expresses my need to acknowledge what is going on in our lives," she said. "The conflict is there, we have to look at it. It's part of who we are."

Kaplan's work has been collected by the Brooklyn Museum, the Washington State Commission for the Arts, the Canada Council Art Bank and other museums. A major body of work on graffiti, "Brooklyn Illuminations," has been exhibited all over the continent. She has taught at various institutions, including the Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design.

Off the Wall is Kaplan's 24th solo exhibition. It's being presented at the Sidney and Gertrude Zack Gallery in the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver, 950 West 41st Ave. There is an opening night reception Thursday, Sept. 12, 7-9 p.m., and Kaplan will be in attendance. Everyone is invited. The exhibit runs until Oct. 23.

– Courtesy of Reisa Smiley Schneider

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