Orit Hofshi--my visit to Culver City

Sunday April 10, 2010 I went to George Billis Gallery on La Ceinega in Culver City to view the prints of noted Israeli Printmaker Orit Hofshi exhibtion: Between the Lines. It's so much better to view these images in person, because of their large scale. Two images used eight plates and the third image used four. They were all printed with a brown ink with tanish color paper. The two images across from each other “Serrate“ and “Venue“ were made in 2002, while “Flash” was made in 2004.

At first glance her prints remind me of the American dust bowl of the 1930’s. The print “Flash” is the only image with a figure. She holds her arms up to express her anguish of what lies in front of her. She wears a dress and is not facing the viewer. There is a sense of movement because her dress and hair move to the side. This image is the only one with some open space. It looks like it could be the open sky above and water below. The smaller image "Serrate" looks like it could be close up of the image "Venue" that is directly across from it. These two images are of mounds of dirt and possibly traces of grass. There seems to be a path. So you infer that maybe the figure in the other image might have been trying to get somewhere. She might be trying to find help or a way to escape from this place. They all look like they are from the same desolate area that was destroyed by wind and erosion. They are all inked without perfection and the borders are not clean and sets a mood this is not the concern of the artist. I liked all three images especially of the texture from lines and the simplicity of her images. I also like her theme about nature and man's struggles within it.

Here is a link to her website:
http://www.orithofshi.com/