Ori Gersht (b. 1967) currently resides and works in London. Gersht’s work is deeply rooted in history, particularly the history of trauma, and explores the intersection of metaphor, conflict, and photography. His practice is characterised by an innovative approach to the materiality of photography, examining the gap between mechanical, objective vision and subjective human perception. He consistently pushes the boundaries of photographic technology and challenges fundamental questions of optical perception, time, and the relationship between images and reality.
Artistic Approach:
- Explores the interplay between destruction and creation, with a focus on how the moment of destruction can become a moment of creation.
- Confronts historical works of art through photography, using cutting-edge technology and elaborate planning to create images that explore the relationship between time, memory, and reality.
- Travels to conflict zones worldwide, photographing landscapes in a way that obfuscates the identity of the locations, allowing the viewer to focus on the abstracted essence of the scene.
- Employs sophisticated photographic techniques such as overexposure and movement to intensify abstraction and challenge conventional representation.
Exhibitions:
Solo exhibitions at prominent museums including:
- Sinclair-Haus, Bad Homburg
- Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus, OH
- Tate Britain, London
- The Imperial War Museum, London
- Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, DC
- Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
- Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Tel Aviv
- Yale Centre for British Art, New Haven, CT
- The Jewish Museum, New York, NY
- Santa Barbara Museum, CA
- Photographers’ Gallery, London
Group exhibitions at:
- Museum Kurhaus Kleve, Kleve
- Palm Springs Art Museum, Palm Springs, CA
- Science Museum, London
- Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Antwerp
Education:
- Bachelor’s Degree in Photography, Film, and Video from the University of Westminster, London.
- Master’s Degree in Photography from the Royal College of Art, London.
Awards:
- Nata Dushnitsky-Kaplan Foundation Prize, Tel Aviv Museum of Art (2014).
- Shenkar’s Honorary Award, Shenkar Art Institute, Tel Aviv (2012).
- Artis Grant (2010).
- The Leon Constantiner Photography Award, Tel Aviv Museum of Art.
Collections:
- Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco
- Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York
- Los Angeles County Museum of Art, CA
- The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, CA
- Victoria and Albert Museum, London
- Imperial War Museum, London
- University of Chicago
- Israel Museum, Jerusalem
- Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
- British Council, Deutsche Bank, UB