VITAL SIGNS. MARKING BREATH. HAIFA. 2023.

Vital Signs: Pulse and Breathing Rhythm in Contemporary Art. Curator Dr. Kobi Ben-Meir.

Participating artists: Absalon, Sharon Azagi, Christian Boltanski, Louise Bourgeois, Miriam Cabessa, Lilach Chitayat, Sophie Dupont, Regina José Galindo, Gideon Gechtman, Douglas Gordon, Inbal Hoffman, Dikla Moskovich, Avi Sabah, Alma Shneor, Dor Zlekha Levy.

Our lives depend on the flow of air and blood. Every movement and sensation are activated by an internal rhythm of air that is drawn into the lungs and then exhaled, and of blood that flows from the heart and ultimately back. The body operates like a well-designed machine, whose complex systems are hidden from view under the skin. The exhibition presents works in which the hidden rhythm of breathing and the pulse is given a visual and vocal expression; works that penetrate the depths of the body and expose the invisible. The internal mechanism that sets the body in motion opens onto the surface, and the boundaries between interior and exterior blur.

The pulse and breathing rates are among the vital signs by which physicians determine whether a person is healthy, sick, or dead. The vital signs are directly affected by one’s emotional state: they change in moments of calm or excitement, fear or infatuation. The exhibition features some of the real products of these vital signs in works of art from the past twenty years. Lines, lights, and sounds are generated as the work of art is adapted to the heartbeats and the cycle of inhalation-exhalation, which determine the structure of the work. This rhythm—whether calm and regular, fast and fidgety, or completely still—may guide one into the depths of consciousness. Alternatively, it can make us conscious of those who are bleeding or those who have been deprived of air to breathe.

The exhibition was made possible through the generous support of Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies; Prof. Khaled Karkabi, Haifa; Danish Arts Foundation
In collaboration with Bnei Zion Medical Center, Haifa

MARKING BREATH 7.2.2023 sunrise 6:31-sunset 17:17

Fotos by Daria Shapira, Shahar Doron, Jeni Katzner