Sigal Barkai presents her paper at the 10th Annual International Conference on Visual and Performing Arts

"The first generation of Israeli artists was "recruited" to tell the Zionist story. This story rejected the diaspora and glorified the image of the native "Sabra". In contrast, the current generation of native-Israeli artists does not feel committed to the social construction that encourages "Sabras" to refrain from the wanderings of exile. Instead, they go on an international quest for their personal and social identities, which often involves a critical artistic dialogue with Israeli society."
- Sigal Barkai

The paper is based on a study (conducted during a year of Post-Doctoral fellowship at Azrieli Institute of Israel Studies, 2017-18) that examined the identities and artistic oeuvre of artists who are active and known both in Israel and abroad. In the talk, Sigal analyzed the works of Israeli-born artists who live and work in Europe or in North America, or roam back and forth in and out of Israel.