A bubbie standing in front of the colorful mural on the Workman’s Circle building in West Los Angeles. Shopkeepers on Fairfax Avenue. The Tel Aviv skyline lit by a thousand cars on a freeway at night. These are just a few of the images on display at the Finegood Art Gallery as part of a an exhibit of 100 photos taken by teenagers in Los Angeles and Tel Aviv.
A project of The Jewish Federation/Valley Alliance, the exhibit showcases the work of students from Milken Community Day School, Cleveland High School, Calabasas High School and other L.A. area schools alongside photos by students from the Yitzhak Rabin New High School and other Tel Aviv institutions of learning. It’s part of the Valley Alliance’s continuing effort to help young people forge relationships with teens in its sister city.
The photos represent the diverse experiences of Jewish cultures, with frequent references to modern life as seen through the eyes of a teenager. In one striking photograph by Ina Laks of the Rabin school, graffiti serves as a backdrop for the memorial to her school’s namesake. A photo by Lindsey Gelb of Mira Costa High School captures a man carving an ice sculpture of a menorah on Manhattan Beach, with a rainbow reflected through the sculpture like a prism.
“We’re very excited about the exhibit,” said Loren Fife, chair of the Picture L.A./T.A. 2000 committee. “It is a terrific example of the Los Angeles and Tel Aviv communities working together. It accomplishes a number of goals for us, educating our kids about photography as an artistic medium and teaching about the similarities and distinctions between our two communities. We’re also gratified at the quality of the photos that have come in from teenagers — there’s some fabulous work. We hope to do many more similar exhibits in the area of arts and culture, bringing Tel Aviv to Los Angeles and Los Angeles to Tel Aviv.”
The exhibit will remain at the Finegood, located on the second level of the Bernard Milken Jewish Community Campus in West Hills, until April 16. Some of the photographs will also be displayed at the Skirball Cultural Center May 7-July 23. For more information on the exhibit or gallery hours, call (818) 464-3200.
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