“In Between” by ZAZ10TS in Times Square
“In Between” is a new concept of video art exhibition curated by ZAZ10TS and presented on ZAZ Corner where continuous artwork is displayed for 15 seconds at a time on a large LED billboard in the heart of Times Square. Curated videos are interspersed between commercial messages every 2 minutes. Starting in September 2020, a new artist will be selected for the showcase each month.
ZAZ Corner, or as referred to by founder Tzili Charney as her “Artistic Mezuzah,” aims to engage the public with visuals that are different from the urban environment. With the launch of ZAZ Corner, ZAZ10TS is working with artists, organizations, universities, and cultural institutions to bring a wide selection of artwork to its digital billboard.
The “In Between” venue will kick off with artist Ben Hagari on September 1st with his pandemic inspired “About Face” video series. Ben Hagari is an award-winning artist whose artwork has been shown in prominent museums around the world. The “About Face” video project is shot entirely at home in New York City as the artist was isolated and stayed in place during the COVID 19 pandemic. The character, constrained by limited expression and space, continues to navigate daily routines. The faceless protagonist found new relevance with everyone around wearing masks, concealing their faces, and inevitably their facial expressions. The expressionless protagonist is shown from the back of his head which is shaved and a projected face void of all facial features. His wardrobe including footwear is worn with the front side on the back and all his movements are reversed.
“The scenarios portray a mundane existence in a world whose marks have been erased. Books have no titles or words, photographs are blanked out, labels are removed; we are left with data. It generates a binary structure: backward and forward, front and rear, serious and funny,” says Ben Hagari.
###
About Ben Hagari
Ben Hagari was born in Tel Aviv and lives and works in NYC. His work has been shown internationally in several solo exhibitions at the Rose Art Museum, the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, and Flora Ars+Natura in Bogotá. Selected group exhibitions featuring his work include the Sculpture Center in New York as part of their In-Practice survey of contemporary sculptures, the Whitechapel Gallery in London, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Krakow, Kunst im Tunnel Contemporary Art Museum in Düsseldorf, and the Israel Museum among others. Hagari has received numerous awards and fellowships for his work, including the Israel Ministry of Culture Prize in Art, the Foundation for Contemporary Art Emergency Grant, the David Berg Foundation Fellowship at Columbia University, and the Chami Fruchter Award for an Emerging Video Artist. He has attended several residency programs, including the LMCC (Lower Manhattan Cultural Council) residency Process Space at Governors Island in New York, the Fountainhead Residency in Miami, and the Bronner Residency in Düsseldorf. Hagari has also received a B.Ed Fine Arts degree from the Hamidrasha School of Art, Beit Berl College in Israel (2008), and an MFA from Columbia University in New York (2014).
