Eran Shakine | Picnic

Eran Shakine – Picnic

Passion for an object usually arises only when the danger of losing it hovers above.

With this aroused danger caused by the Covid virus, the unrestricted movement in the cultural, social and natural space that has been so accessible and self-evident all our lives has become the object we feared to lose, an object that may have lost its old form forever.

The picnic, a meal and gathering shared by family and friends, originated in post-revolutionary France when all the gardens and private estates were opened to the general public.  This experience and exposure to outdoor meals and gatherings has been emphasized this past year and has the potential for a revival and renewal. The word “picnic”, with all the freedom, closeness and even playfulness it evokes, returned to the post-Covid collective consciousness as a possible space, as an unmediated meeting place, without stigmas and labels in harmony with nature. In this sense, the space is not only physical, but also mental and transcendental.

Shakine’s picnic figures nestle up to this possible space, in search of the lost closeness.

The exhibition features new oil paintings from the past year and bronze sculptures produced between closures. The colorful and large-scale paintings depict undefined figures sitting together depicted in concise and expressive lines. The monumental bronze sculptures depict figures of thin, slender, tall girls in standing, walking, and observing poses. Despite the external thinness, there is a sense of inner strength and serenity in the sculptural figures.

The central statue, a massive female bronze sculptures size (260 cm), is placed in the entrance of the gallery and bends to look out of the front door, as if peeking into the reality outside the art space.  A figure of a sitting girl (160 cm) is seen in repose, wearing high heels ready for the moment when the restive period ends and she will be required to return to the “Matrix”. The tall figure in the back space (300 cm) walks resolutely on slender legs towards the exit of the gallery ready for her return to the stage. In all the works, both paintings and sculptures, there is a combination of monumental delicacy, massiveness and sensitivity.  In each work, the gaze is inward in search of what really matters.

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In recent years, Eran Shakine has presented solo exhibitions at The Jewish Museum in Berlin; The Jewish Museum in Munich; the Museum Ons ’Lieve Heer op Solder in Amsterdam; and the Mana Center for the Arts in New Jersey, USA.
Shakine has also exhibited in important and large-scale public projects in Israel and around the world, such as Warsaw, Budapest, Amsterdam, Munich and Tel Aviv.
Postponed by Covid, the upcoming year will include scheduled exhibitions in Hong Kong and the Cannes Museum in Toronto. Additionally, a public sculpture will be placed in the Red-Light district of Amsterdam. Shakine’s artworks are in important collections in Israel and around the world, including the British Museum in London; Ludwig Museum in Germany; the Israel Museum; and the Tel Aviv Museum.