Naked Leg, Brno House of Art, September 2019
Exhibited also at Artport Tel Aviv and Pram Gallery, Prague
Curator: Sally Haftel Naveh
The fabric dolls of Merav Kamel and Halil Balabin represent an array of topics spanning the biographical, current events, mythology and the history of civilization. Varying in size, these lanky figurines are sewn and crafted by hand and appear solo or in ensembles – mostly personifications, but sometimes monstrosities or beasts. By way of their medium, they conjure the innocence of handmade ragdolls and the world of childhood – attributes which they still retain, thanks to the suppleness of forms and the gentle shaping of bodies; yet the situations they enact place them in the realm of the vulgar, the hyper-sexualized and overtly-political. Walking in the footsteps of Mike Kelley and Louise Bourgeois – artists who have mined the sarcastic potential inherent in the amorphous shapes of stuffed dolls – Kamel and Balabin are able to dabble in controversy and obscenity with considerable wit, playfulness and lyricism. Their installation in the show brings together a selection of characters from their overall body of work – a crowded ensemble evoking an erratic mixture of hopes, entanglements, fears, desires and shortcomings, all looked at with great empathy.
Exhibited also at Artport Tel Aviv and Pram Gallery, Prague
Curator: Sally Haftel Naveh
The fabric dolls of Merav Kamel and Halil Balabin represent an array of topics spanning the biographical, current events, mythology and the history of civilization. Varying in size, these lanky figurines are sewn and crafted by hand and appear solo or in ensembles – mostly personifications, but sometimes monstrosities or beasts. By way of their medium, they conjure the innocence of handmade ragdolls and the world of childhood – attributes which they still retain, thanks to the suppleness of forms and the gentle shaping of bodies; yet the situations they enact place them in the realm of the vulgar, the hyper-sexualized and overtly-political. Walking in the footsteps of Mike Kelley and Louise Bourgeois – artists who have mined the sarcastic potential inherent in the amorphous shapes of stuffed dolls – Kamel and Balabin are able to dabble in controversy and obscenity with considerable wit, playfulness and lyricism. Their installation in the show brings together a selection of characters from their overall body of work – a crowded ensemble evoking an erratic mixture of hopes, entanglements, fears, desires and shortcomings, all looked at with great empathy.
Nectar, 2019, fabric, 37x35x80 cm
Redeemer, 2019, fabric, 60x40x33 cm
Accidental, 2019, fabric, 60x75x24 cm
Evolution, 55x50x20 cm, fabric, 2019
Painter and his model, 2019, fabric, 38x55x70 cm
Archaeologist, 2019, fabric, 70x45x25 cm
Messianic Worm, 2019, fabric, 60x57x30 cm
Eunuch, 2019, fabric, 65x30x10 cm
Nils, 2019, fabric, 35x34x52 cmLacan, 2019, fabric, 40x28x20 cm
Lacan, 2019, fabric, 40x28x20 cm
Language of the branches,2019, fabric, 125x70x50 cm
Pissed, 2019, fabric, 38x55x70 cm
Naked leg, 2019, fabric, 50x55x90 cm
Travel Guide, 2019, fabric, 35x65x20 cm
The Two Sages, 2019, fabric, 45x60x25 cm
חליל בלבין מרב קמל
חליל בלבין מרב קמל