Born 1970 in Kfar Yehezkel, Israel

Lives and works in Berlin and Amsterdam

 

The imagery of identity and the politics of memory are the themes which form the core of Yael Bartana‘s artistic practice. With her point of departure being the national consciousness propagated by her native Israel, the artist explores the ceremonies, public rituals and social diversions that exist to reaffirm collective identities across different nation states.

 

Constantly seeking to create alternative fictional realities in commentary to existing narratives, Yael Bartana stages speculative situations and introduces fictive moments and futures in her works. Though known for her films and collective performances, the artist works across many various media, including sculpture, light ojects, installation and photography.

 

Bartana has had numerous solo exhibitions including the Center for Digital Art (CDA), Holon (2023); Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia (2021/ 2018); the Jewish Museum, Berlin (2021); Fondazione Modena Arte Visive, Modena (2019); Musée cantonal des Beaux-Arts, Lausanne (2017); Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam (2014); Secession, Vienna (2012); and Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Humlebæk, Denmark (2012). Bartana was the first non-Polish artist to represent Poland at the 54th Venice Biennale in 2011 with her acclaimed trilogy And Europe Will Be Stunned.

 

Yael Bartana‘s works are part of the collections of The Jewish Museum, Berlin; Tate Modern, London; The Jewish Museum, New York; The Guggenheim, New York; Centre Pompidou, Paris; Museum of Modern Art, Warsaw; The Israel Museum, Jerusalem; Kunstmuseum, St. Gallen, Switzerland; Van Abbe Museum, Netherlands; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; Magasin III - Museum for Contemporary Art, Stockholm, Sammlung des Bundes, among others.