The exhibition examines how contemporary Israeli art can express the concept of identity beyond the notion of “hshuma” – social shame.

The research began by perceiving identity through its negative self, the prohibited and the unacceptable. The shame has left empty spaces, void and silence, among the artists’ experiences, charged with socio-political content. HSHUMA isn't just another glance at Israeli contemporary art but is intrinsic to it and an integral part of it. All of the participating artists share a link to North African culture, whether through open, deep-rooted first-person experience or in a faded, concealed form repressed by mainstream Israeli culture.

Participating artists: Asaf Abutbul, Dan Allon, Eyal Assulin, Maya Attoun, David BenHarroch, Bitton, Esther Cohen, Yosef Joseph Dadoune, Gil Desiano, Mati Elmaliach, Michael Liani, Amit Matalon, Dafna Shalom, Nir Shitrit, Daniel Shoshan, Koby Sibony, Merav Sudaey.

English translation: Judith Apelton.