IS THAT IT

2020

NULOBAZ, Cooperative Art Space, Tel Aviv Curator: Shlomit Dror

IS THAT IT, 2020

Text by: Shlomit Dror

This exhibition presents a diverse collection of works made by Shony Rivnay, consisting of never before seen pieces from 2001, 2004, 2005 and 2015, and one painting made this year. Each work can be viewed as isolated and autonomous, claimed by its own merit. Yet, these oeuvres also become fragments of a larger constellation or ensemble, transforming the gallery into a highly energized site. These works behave as separate radars, charged with tension and energy, as though signaling to one another within an expandable system of symbols and meanings. This accumulation of materials and their unveiling in 2020 is no coincidence – they have resurfaced in a tumultuous period of time, where upheaval and chaos around the world are surging rapidly. The context of these specific works resonates with the current social, political and economic conditions we are facing today, and further underscores the uncertainties that have exacerbated due to the global pandemic. Their reemergence is powerful and timely and couldn’t be more inspiring – every piece hits a nerve and extends beyond the gallery.

The show juxtaposes paintings and sculptures that are both figurative and abstract, demonstrating the artist’s negotiation between image-making and non-descript art. This approach enables Rivnay to examine the weight of a symbol, but also ways it is neutralized, and stripped of its meaning. Offering this duality, Rivnay flirts with symbolism and iconography, bestowing each work with multiple entry points and associations. By leaving these works open-ended, and cleverly detaching them from their meaning, we are granted a wider perspective and encounter with the purity of the form.

The exhibition’s point of departure is a triptych (Untitled, 2005-2017) that includes a painting of a pig, flanked by two abstract works, which transcend the animal’s iconography to a pure pictorial form. Recalling an altarpiece, due to its size and layout, the painting’s dramatic quality is further enhanced by the striking depiction of pig, portrayed with a human eye. Typically, the portrayal of pigs bears both positive and negative qualities. It is frequently used in Chinese cultures as a reference to wealth and substance, whereas in the West, the pig is associated with gluttony and human depravity. Within the context of this show, this triptych is not relegated to one single meaning, but rather signals an unbearable dichotomy, with which we are forced to reckon: on one hand, this composition emphasizes the pig’s corporeal physicality; on the other, the subject is stripped of its most essential features. The organic forms in red and pink tones, are rendered in a coarse application of paint and are completely consumed by the background that is mostly smooth. The pig’s pink color and overall flat depiction contrasts the treatment and attention given to its detailed ears, runny nose and telling eye—features associated with human traits identified with bestiality, overindulgence and selfishness. The quasi-bodily forms framing the painting in the middle, not only accentuate the pig’s fleshiness, but are redolent of carnivorous behavior, begging the question of whether we see ourselves as the victim or the victimizer, the hunted or the hunter? And, when are we ever fully satiated?

The powerful components seen in the sculpture CPU (2007), further emphasize Rivnay’s particular use of symbols and allegory as a way of expressing situations occurring in society, while maintaining a continuous dialogue with abstraction and formalism. The shift between the two, enables the artist to work in a manner that is both playful and deep. The title of the work is the abbreviation for Central Processing Unit, a technical term used to describe the main part of the computer that controls all the other parts, essentially the machine’s brains. Inspired by the device’s minimalistic features, as well as its mechanical abilities, Rivnay’s anthropomorphic sculpture, which resembles a multi-legged creature, suggests a satirical critique on the apathetic attitude of world leaders. The long rectangle shape resembles a large dining table, onto which uniform-sized spoons, evocative of official representatives, lean in a flawless order. The spoons’ uniformity and stoic position is reminiscent of upper echelons within the government, disconnected from civilians’ day-to-day struggles. Yet, the way in which these spoons are tilted at a slight diagonal, also evokes an act of virtue and giving alms. The duality Rivnay presents creates a greater discomfort amongst viewers, realizing that the spoon that distributes is also the spoon that seizes. On which side do we stand, the giver or the taker? The use of simple geometric shapes, as seen in CPU, demonstrates Rivnay’s engagement with minimalism. The artist further utilizes this style in the sculpture Shel Rosh, Shel Yad (of the head, of the hand) (2004), which is based on the cubic black leather boxes of the Tefillin (phylacteries). The sculpture’s gravity and smooth surface eliminates expressive and religious content, yet invites contemplation. The Tefillin’s religious purpose of helping to transition and distinguish between the sacred and the ordinary, is a metaphor which connects us to the current global, political, social and personal transitions we are all experiencing.

The deep examination of symbols continues in one of the artist’s earliest works in the show, Hine Ani (2001). The powerful phrase placed on the cross, Hine Ani (Here I am), stems from the biblical word “Hineni.” It is an offer of total availability, prepared to reflect on who we are and be fully present and ready to take on new tasks, both physically and existentially. The work’s symmetrical lines and evenly distributed Hebrew letters on the cross, make for a strong Judeo-Christian emblem that embodies Rivnay’s shift of returning and fully committing to art, after years of working in advertisement. Centered and suspended from the ceiling, the work is framed by two wooden poles that resemble scepters often used by rulers, casting a ceremonious effect on the overall display. This piece metaphorically separates the space, while the vertical and horizontal lines suggest an important aspect in human life, and an overarching theme in this show, that of the power to choose. Just like the triptych painting and the sculptures, this oeuvre also invites viewers to self-examine and question their actions and motives, in the same way it marked Rivnay’s transition towards his art practice twenty years ago.

The abstract painting across from the triptych, a recent work made in 2020, is a nod from the artist, reflecting on the accumulation of both materials and life events that we, like him, are surrounded by daily. In that sense, it becomes the show’s backdrop, demonstrating how extreme contradictions of forms, textures and materials inform Rivnay’s work. In this painting we are not presented with recognizable shapes or figures as the rest of the pieces in the show offer, yet, this work internalizes a sense of being in the void and in transition, where there’s no end nor beginning. The flat background, along with layers of shapes and colors allows all elements to meet and submerge; here is where Rivnay questions if there is order in the midst of chaos, and whether or not we need to see beyond what we are presented with.