Creating in Jerusalem is what guided us from the first day we established the festival 14 years ago. creative work in a broader sense; One that is made by artists from Jerusalem, one that creates art that is influenced by the city, one that is displayed in galleries and alternative exhibition spaces that allow for unique exhibitions, and above all, creative work that sees itself as influencing life here. An endeavor that uses the festival’s reach to continue and voice its message further. Local creative work that is here to stay and to maintain a cultural practice throughout the year. After two years of uncertainty, which have caused shifts, existential questions and changes in the cultural perception in Israel and around the world, we are happy, excited and proud to present the Manofim Festival of 2022, which is all about expansion: real, intellectual and creative.
The first day of the festival will begin at our home, the place where Manofim was conceived: Art Cube Artists’ Studios in Talpiot, a structure that is undergoing significant expansion this year. As part of the opening night, we will lay two cornerstones for the building, its surroundings and for us: the first, the inauguration of the rooftop towards its transformation into a meeting place for local art and communities, and the second, the establishment of a bilingual children’s club for art under the nearby Moshe Baram Bridge.
These two significant projects will be launched on special occasions in honor of the festival: on the roof we will celebrate a decade (!) of the online art magazine Harama (which was also coneived in the corridors of the workshops…) The journal that, over the course of ten years, has become an extensive public archive of Israeli art, will “step out of the screen” for one evening and will be held live in front of an audience for the first time, under the theme “Active Substance”. Artists will activate visual and sonic materials, cross gender boundaries, liberate consciousness and celebrate matter on the coolest rooftop in the industrial zone.
The space under the bridge will be inaugurated with “the Magical Land of the Bridge” – an art club for Arabic- and Hebrew-speaking children and families from east and west of the city. In the club we will meet friendly and colorful creatures and together with them we will face our fears, make new connections, and learn to know each other through art, story and imagination. The club, like the rooftop, will continue its activities throughout the entire year and is the result of effort and cooperation between us and local residents, educational initiatives and people who dream of a pleasant shared space that will embrace all types of populations.
In the same evening we will also begin the “First Reveal” events which will accompany us throughout the festival. These events will feature presentations of works in progress that are currently being created in Jerusalem and have not yet been presented to the general public, this is a spectacular opportunity to experience what is currently happening in the local studios through a direct encounter with the artists who create them. To be exposed to the stories behind the works, the thought processes, the creative practices, the shaping of the material, the sources of inspiration and more. This year, ten established and emerging artists were selected, from diverse mediums located in a variety of areas of the city. The number of places is very limited, we recommend to reserve a place soon.
The Jerusalem Art Conference #7, which has already become a tradition, is expanding to two days and outside the borders of the country, and will be dedicated to the place of art in relation to international and local political, climate and technological issues. Among the many lectures, we will also host two panels on current issues with international guests: one will be dedicated to the Documenta exhibition in Kassel, Germany, taking place this summer and has caused many discussions and scandals, and the other will be dedicated to the situation of artists in times of crisis, war and displacement, with the participation of artists from Ukraine, Russia and Belarus.
On our website you can find information about dozens of new exhibitions that are opening and being presented throughout the city as well as special events that take place in the various galleries. In order to experience them up close, we highly recommend Manofim Tours – a fascinating array of tours that combine the various exhibitions, each at a different location and this year with a special emphasis on the history of the city’s art. Each of the tours will be led by a professional guide who are familiar with the secrets of the city and will take you to the surprising places that Jerusalem and its art have to offer.
And last but not least, “The Mixer”, the musical line produced especially for the festival, which mixes art and music, East and West, old and new with exciting connections between artists from Jerusalem and inspiring locations! We present Echo in a digital performance alongside an opening act by Avizohar, who will both come to raise the roof of the Art Cube Artists’ Studios in Talpiot, Sima Nun who will host J. Lamotta for a turned up hip-hop show that will be opened by the Jerusalem Hype crew with showcases of local rappers and freestyle cyphers, and finally an analog show in the intoxicating open air of Hansen House where the El Khat band will host Riff Cohen for a Parisian flavored Yemenite groove and the princess of the Maghreb, Khen Elmaleh, will take good care of you with a rare DJ set homaging tape music.
The Manofim Festival is full of events, so this year we have prepared daily recommendation menus for you, you just have to choose the daily recommendation that suits you, purchase the “Manofim Daily Pass” here at an attractive price and experience the art presented in the city!
And for those who will come from outside the city, this year we have prepared an accommodation package at a great price for the night between Thursday and Friday, with an excellent hotel as well as entrance to all the festival events and clear mountain air (courtesy of Jerusalem). All the details here
Thank you to all the artists, galleries, exhibition spaces, independent groups, directors of the institutions, and to the many supporters and friends who have accompanied us for fourteen years – without you this festival would not have been possible.
See you at the exhibitions and events!
Rinat Edelstein and Lee He Shulov