Victoria Pelman: Art Gallery
This painting depicts a young woman laying on a couch holding a golden cockatiel in a luxurious arc on the backdrop of ancient ruins of Caesar’s palace. The painting was inspired by a combination of Titian’s “Venus of Urbino” and a beautiful location in Israel. A woman is resting in the ancient ruins of Caesarea. The arcs represent recent accomplishments and the birds represents her newfound freedom. The golden oversized cockatiel hints at magic playing part in the scene. The Mediterranean floor is covered in mosaics and the front of the painting is a scene from the artist’s living room.
Iron Tree (2017)
In this painting, Victoria depicts a tree encompassing couples, grandparents, a nursing mother, a street cat, babies, and soldiers that protects them from the chaos around them. The artist painted it during Operation Protective Edge (Tzuk Eitan) in Summer of 2014.
Asherah: The Observer (2017)
Here a nude female leans on a pedestal observing something in the distance, representing the ancient goddess Asherah. Asherah was the goddess of the pre-Biblical Hebrews and Canaanites but later became the Roman goddess Aphrodite.
Fixed and Loaded (2016)
This painting represents a strong Israeli woman. Israel requires universal service of all its Jewish citizens, which means that most women serve in the military or complete some sort of alternative public service for two years of their lives, beginning when they turn eighteen. Here, Victoria represents those many female veterans, the cracks and ceramic pieces representing the toll that the conflict takes on women. And yet, the pieces are still held together through the power of a string of flowers that symbolize their love of their country and their strong desire to protect it.
Acquired Innocence (2016)
This painting depicts a young woman wearing a green laurel wreath leaning towards a parrot that is resting on a branch amongst a wall of flowers in mosaic form. The painting captures a moment in Victoria's young life: one day during the Second Intifada (Second Intifada), Victoria saw a female soldier walking towards the neighborhood cement wall, on her hair a laurel wreath. The young woman approached the flowers and smelled them. The painting, capturing an explicit moment of joy and pleasure in the midst of war and destruction, might be a visual prayer for peace and freedom.
To see more of Victoria Pelman's work, visit her website at www.victoriapelman.com.
