The Israel Museum presents "Great Wide Open: New and Old in the Collection"

On view through April 2, 2013

Since the Romantic era, artists have been fascinated by seascapes and desert landscapes, their infinitude, the dangers inherent in them, and the catharsis they offer. Challenged by their predominantly abstract forms and textures, painters and photographers alike have struggled to capture the vast, ungraspable plains devoid of a distinct beginning and end. Approximately sixty works by Israeli and international artists are on view, including recently acquired artworks alongside others from the Museum's collections. Juxtaposing older and new works, the exhibition recontextualizes the various periods, movements, and mindsets that underline the multilayered quality of the collection. Among the artists whose works are on display are Mordecai Ardon, Arie Aroch, Gustav Courbet, Joseph Dadoune, Ori Gersht, Dani Karavan, Liat Livni, Uri Nir, Ezra Orion, and Gilad Ratman.

Image: Ori Gersht, Eclipse, 2002