Small line, big press-An interview with the print and engraving artist Geula Marok-Kahan, wife of Prof. David Kahan, head of the Department of Materials and Surface Research at the Weizmann Institute of Science and also: at the Weizmann Institute they do theater
Redemption as a priest. Endless expression possibilities
Artists strive to create, just like scientists must research," says the print and engraving artist Geula Marok-Kahan, wife of Prof. David Kahan, head of the Materials and Surfaces Research Department at the Weizmann Institute of Science. She was born in Kibbutz Sde Nehemiah, and grew up on the banks of the Dan and Banias, at the foot of the Golan. In her works, she brings a personal, poignant, and well-articulated look at the landscapes of the Land of Israel in general, and the landscape of her childhood in particular. The cypress tree reappears in her paintings in recent years. "The cypress, for me, is a tree with a dimension of holiness and life, which is why it fascinates me so much. For paths, the trees are not just part of a landscape description. In my works they express inner human feelings, such as loneliness and longing for belonging. A single tree expresses a different feeling than that evoked by a group of trees."
She began her career as an artist at the art studio in Tel-Hai, under the guidance of the artist photographer Avraham Eilat, who opened a door for her to the world of prints. After that she arrived in Tel Aviv. "I studied at the Avni Institute of Artistic Printing, and worked in the engraving technique
Guided by Tovia Barry. Later, in the print workshop at the University of Colorado, I specialized in different print methods.
Engraving is an ancient technique. Already in ancient times it was used for hammering tools and weapons. In the 15th century, with the invention of the press, artists also began to use it. Artists like Diirer, Rembrandt and Goya developed the technique, which has been a means of expression for many artists since then. It is a method with a depth dimension that excites me every time anew, and the variety of textures and the sensitivity of the line is a sea of endless possibilities of expression."
In recent years, she has been creating in the printmaking workshop at the Artists' House in Tel Aviv, where her solo exhibition will be presented soon. At the same time she teaches prisoners in Ramla prison to express themselves through art. "There is immense satisfaction when one of the prisoners tells proudly that he sent a painting he made by his own hands to one of his children."
Etching in four steps
1. On a metal plate (iron, aluminum brass) apply a layer of wax, sealed to acid. On the wax, draw fine and thin lines with a stylus. The board is then placed in nitric acid, which corrodes every visible piece of metal. At this stage, the metal is cleaned from the wax, and then a grooved metal will be revealed.
2. After slightly heating the board, special oil paint for prints is injected into it. Clean with careful movements, so that the upper surface of the board is clean while the color remains in every point and the hard line in the metal.
3. Place the board on the press and place damp paper on it, special for engraving. When the plate is moved under the press, the pressure transfers the color from the plate to the damp paper.
4. Take the paper out of the press, meet the creation for the first time - and get excited.
A comedy with eight funerals
"After all, we did not come to the world to complain about diseases. We also never came to count money. And we didn't come to the world to play bridge, and yet, we don't say the real thing we have to say."
What is the real thing, which is not said? And how much sorrow, disappointments, loneliness and despair does a person have to endure until he discovers the real thing, until he receives a little human treatment, until his wishes come true, and he goes, for example, to Switzerland? Hanoch Levin raises these questions in the play "Packers of Suitcases", which he himself described as "a play of our time and place, containing six families, five lovers, three bachelors, nine deceased, eight funerals, four widows, three Americans, eleven suitcases, a baby, A homosexual, a prostitute, a stutterer and a hunchback - they are all very unhappy."
All the unhappy characters were recently played by students from the Weizmann Institute of Science, members of the institute's theater group, who staged the play "Packers of Suitcases" at the "Tsvata" hall in Tel Aviv. The members of the drama group of the Weizmann Institute of Science, which has been operating since 2002, mainly deal with the existential questions that concern every average science student: what are the physical laws that govern the universe, and what biological mechanisms activate living beings. In their spare time they research
The students also learn about the world of theater, and the variety of human and social questions that arise from it - through improvisations, dialogues, etc., and under the guidance of the actress, director and acting teacher Irit Natan-Bandek. The results of this in-depth research are reflected in a theater production that the group puts on every year.
"We worked on material by Hanoch Levin in the circle over the years," says Inbal Friedler, "and we always dreamed of putting on a play by him. The work was intense and difficult, and continued into the night, but in the end - thanks to the energy, vigor and talent of Irit - we saw how the play came together." Adi Natan also finds in it connections to scientific work. "The scientific work has little of the absurdity that exists in the play, the daily research work is sometimes a struggle for survival. They work vigorously, and in most cases the working day ends without results, and the road is full of faults and obstacles. On the other hand, the curiosity of 'what will happen tomorrow?' Prevents and manages to overcome the countless times when nothing happens."
Prof. Yosef Emery, from the Department of Condensed Matter Physics, knows some of the players, as students participating in the courses he teaches. The show gave him an opportunity to be impressed by their stage skills as well. "The ability was very impressive, no less than a professional show," he says. "It's nice to discover that the students are people of clusters and have diverse talents, since engaging in other areas of interest does not harm scientific performance, and even improves it."
Participated in the performance: Inbal Ellof, Liran Goren, Haim Harosh, Shlomit Zarhi, Keren Hamma, Yoav Lahini, Khalil Horesh Naori, Ran Novak, Adi Natan, Lena Smolensky, Inbal Friedler, Motti Friedman, Barak Reva and Yael Ronan.
