"What I cannot say, I write. What I cannot write, I draw." In her new exhibition "Writing and Art: The In-Between Language" at the French institute of Tel-Aviv, the artist and writer Arielle Sibony reveals the concept of "unwriting": a unique artistic language that allows her to reach a large audience. "It's my signature," she says. The exhibition, which will be inaugurated on September 12 at 7:30 PM, was originally scheduled for last year but was postponed due to the war. With this new universal artistic genre, Arielle expresses herself differently from words, leaving ample room for interpretation. Interwoven signs, symbols, and geometric shapes punctuate Arielle's canvases, which creates endlessly.
Born in Paris, Arielle Sibony, a Franco-Israeli, made aliyah ten years ago. Daughter of mathematician, psychoanalyst, and philosopher Daniel Sibony, Arielle quickly felt the need to find her own path. Graduated in philosophy and literature in Paris, she took a gap year in the Arab village of Baqa al-Gharabiyye in Israel, a significant experience that allowed her to leave the family cocoon and emancipate herself before enrolling in a master's program at Tel Aviv University.
"My art stems from my identity. One must step out of their comfort zone to discover themselves. I wanted to know if I was an intellectual because I was born into an intellectual family, or if I genuinely enjoyed it. My experience in the kibbutz and with the Arab family I lived with for a year opened me up to others. I learned Arabic before Hebrew. After my master’s, I started writing and became interested in femininity in Israel as a reflection of society. Israel is a microcosm of the world, and we observe it through women," says Arielle.
The young woman then embarked on writing biographies of Israeli personalities, including that of Itzhak Shamir, former Prime Minister of the State of Israel, before publishing her first novel Corps à corps in 2022, which addresses body issues.
An unconditional love for writing
Arielle's passion for writing quickly led her to the realm of art, which has now become an integral part of her identity.
"Unwriting was born from the frustration of not being read by the people I care about most in Israel, who don't speak French. I questioned myself about language and instinctively produced a sort of universal language, where everyone conveys their own interpretation," says Arielle.
A place for Interpretation
In her paintings, reflecting a perpetual quest for identity, Arielle aims to extend conventional writing. Everything revolves around language. "When I write a novel, there are rules, but when I strip everything away, it results in pure forms, and it’s up to the audience to see what they want to see," she explains.
In her very original works, which make an immediate impression, one can see words, letters in Arabic, Hebrew, or Japanese, faces, bodies of women, and even rockets. Arielle's abstract style speaks to each of us and arouses curiosity: the viewer is left alone, facing a multitude of meanings.
"Generally, I write in my moleskine (notebook), and I unwrite on the adjacent page; it’s a sort of art at the crossroads of languages and a way to talk about myself without being exposed. My writing is completely fictional, deswriting is inherent to my writing, and I embrace the concept of serendipity. I never know where I'm going; I let creation and chance guide me," Arielle asserts.
An In-Between Language
To reveal to the world the unconscious duality that inhabits her and dictates her life, Arielle has created a unique in-between language: between two identities, Paris and Tel Aviv, two languages, French and Hebrew, but also in memory of her twin sister whom she never knew, who died at birth.
"I carry this double within me; I have always lived for two: double degree, writer-artist, Paris-Tel Aviv, and it is very present in my art. That’s why it was important for me to exhibit at the French institute because this place reflects my Franco-Israeli dual identity. I constantly juggle between the two cultures. For example, the triangle is an omnipresent symbol in my paintings because it represents me; I am a sort of bridge between Paris and Tel Aviv and between my older sisters and my brother," explains Arielle.
For the young woman, art and writing are correlated and form a whole. Art has marked the periods of her life and her states of mind, just as literature has accompanied her journey. She has recently started to merge the two arts by incorporating paper into her canvases through collages.
"My message is that I don’t want to have a message; I want people to tell me what my art evokes for them. It’s very important; I’m not here to dictate my problems or feelings," concluded Arielle.
Before the French institute, Arielle has exhibited in Beit Hana and Rothschild in Tel Aviv, Lisbon, Bordeaux, and has sold her works in Los Angeles. In October, she will close the artist residency in Lisbon and plans to exhibit in Paris before publishing her new novel En silence within the coming year.
"Writing and Art: The In-Between Language," an exhibition that doesn't leave one indifferent, is to be seen until October 3 at the French institute of Tel Aviv.
Caroline Haïat
Comments