I was four years old when I first felt connected with something greater.

We were about to leave Israel, my place of birth, and enter the uncharted territory of South Africa. I was swinging in a public park outside my grandparents’ apartment complex in Beer Sheva. As twilight faded into night and the stars emerged, I found myself swinging towards the sky, contemplating its expansiveness and that of the adventure ahead of me, and feeling expanded within and drawn towards something greater.

As a figurative oil painter, I am interested in human drama and emotion within the setting of the natural world. I paint in oils on canvas in the studio and incorporate other media such as pastels, watercolours and pencil colours for drawing and outdoor sketching. Quick, rhythmic brushstrokes add a dynamic energy to my work, blending expressive Impressionism in a palette inspired by nature. 

Creating art is my way of drawing down light into a material world, and finding light that emanates even out of dark places. Nature is the ultimate medium of drawing connection to something beyond our physical surroundings. I aim to bridge the physical and spiritual through a narrative that is both personal yet universal.

A wondrous childhood in Africa, as well as my own ethnic background, has had a lingering influence; from an early fascination with dreams, to the bright primary colours and earthy textures of tribal cultures, and always, always a sky of bright blue, over a luscious abundant green and earthy landscape. Early adulthood saw me embracing dark themes, often portraying subjects lost in forests. A closure of that period developed into one of spiritual growth and a connection to themes of the spirit and holy texts, as well as a love of the land of Israel, to which I eventually returned.

Today I focus on bright colours and illumination, whether through a painting of a sun-dappled park or a drawing expressing the purity of the soul. Throughout my practise and within my personal life, I strive to focus on light and joy, and invite the viewer to identify their own yearning for connection and joy – towards a more meaningful life and a better world.