Moran Asraf
Graduate of Sapir College and Seminar Ha'Kibbutzim College, where she received an award for excellence and as a Guiding Artist in the Community. Presented a solo show at the Jerusalem Artists House and took part at Desin Week JLM. Participated in the Zoom Project at the Museum of Natural History and additional group exhibitions at Zumu, HaMaabada Gallery, Sakhnin Gallery, Minus 1 Gallery and more. Winner of an Art Encouragement award as well as the first place at the Tel Aviv International Student Film Festival. At age 31 and with no prior knowledge of art, Asraf began her path as an artist. Working with photography, video and performance, Asraf uses her body as a tool with which she searches for her identity as a Mizrachi woman from Israel’s geographic margins, who was defined throughout her life by the gaze of men. The body at the center of her work today is not wounded or victimized but rather present and experienced, a body which looks back at the observer with a feminine, feminist, critical and humorous gaze. By placing it at the center of her work, Asraf seeks to transform her personal, intimate biography into a statement. This statement is feminine, Mizrahi, class-conscious and cultural-political. The principal materials used in her works are cleaning pads and steel wool, both of which are pleasant to look at but rough to the touch. Through them she questions visibility, illusion and seduction as she is constantly engaged in the act cleaning, disinfecting and erasing.
