The IATF operates Social Services providing social and emotional support for PLHIV. During 2012, an 8 week long pottery workshop was conducted by the artist, Rani Gilat. The personal connection created between Rani and the participants gave birth to a new idea in Rani’s mind – Gilat Project – A yearly workshop clay sculpting where life with HIV is the inspiration.
The social stigma and prejudice aimed at the Positive Community serve as the biggest obstacle to full social normalization of the disease. In conjunction with technique and skill, participants learnt how to translate their experience of life with HIV, into artwork thus, promoting the Positive Community to the forefront in the context of Art.
The Israel AIDS Task Force is proud to present to you these works which constitute an inseparable part of the mosaic called Israeli art, by telling the story of their creators.
“For over a year we have worked together `doing ceramics`. Despite the wide range in our ages we have many similarities: more than half are involved in art and design, most of us are bachelors, most of us live in Tel Aviv. Being in the studio was a kind of shelter for us where we could forget about the fact that we are `carriers` of a social stigma and be freed from the necessity to create daily defense mechanisms.
This project allowed us to deal with our illness by creating art loaded with personal or biographical elements. We did not want to express the virus but rather explore our personal identity in a new and changing world. Through this creative experience we wanted to express questions of self image, identity, happiness, loneliness and longing.“
These Pieces were exhibited in Benyamini Contemporary Ceramics Center
