Pomegrenade photograph (H 68 x B 100 cm)
Insurance price 1000 Euros
Pomegrenade 2 digitally handwritten texts in English and German (2 x (H 100 x B 81cm))
Insurance price 2000 Euros
Pomegrenade consists of a photograph of red-stained hands, de-pulped pomegranates and red-stained white linen; also to be seen are the 2 digitally handwritten texts in red and black, in the form of a pomegranate or hand grenade, displaying Sylvia Ury’s story, although it is Tanya who tells her late mother’s tale. As a child Sylvia fled with her Jewish parents from Nazi Germany to England. As a young woman, after travelling with her mother to visit relatives in Palestine, she decided to stay and fight in the War of Independence.
The word play of the invented word pomegrenade is more overt in the German language, where “Granatapfel” (pomegranate) is an “apple grenade”; the apple from the tree of knowledge and the expulsion from the Garden of Eden are implied here.
“…By the 17th century, cricket ball-sized iron spheres packed with gunpowder and fitted with slow-burning wicks were being used in Europe. Soldiers would throw them to breach defences during siege operations. Because of the weapon’s resemblance to a pomegranate, it was called a grenade and the soldier a grenadier…” Nader Fekri, Notes and Queries, Guardian Weekly January 26-February 1 2007
For the DVD version of Promised Land, several series of photographs taken with a drive camera function are displayed within the space of a few seconds: pomegranates are de-pulped, by a woman (the artist), whose face is not in view. Dressed in white, sitting in front of a table with a white tablecloth, she wipes her red-stained hands against her white blouse.
Tanya Ury
Information
Concept, text, performance and voice over: Tanya Ury
Text editor: Amin Farzanefar
German translation Gelobtes Land: Tanya Ury and Amin Farzanefar
Camera: David Janecek
Digital processing: Claudia Stasch
DVD edit: Rainer Nelissen
DVD image correction Pixel2motion — crossmediadesign
Bibliography
Moses and Monotheism, An Outline of Psycho-Analysis and Other Works, Sigmund Freud 1937 – 40, Vintage, The Hogarth Press UK, 2001 ISBN 0−099−42678−1
Precarious Life — The Powers of Mourning and Violence, Judith Butler, 2004 publ. Verso, ISBN 1 84467 005 8
Andreas Kilcher: The Moses of Sinai and the Moses of Egypt. Moses as Magician in Jewish Literature and Western Esotericism. In: Aries. Journal for the Study of Western Esotericism. Edited by Roland Edighoffer, Antoine Faivre and Wouter J. Hanegraaff. 4, Heft 2 (2004), S. 148 – 170. Leiden (NL)
New English Bible
Lutherbibel
Presentation
2005 (2 – 18.12.) DVD Version, group exhibition, Traum und Trauma — Zur Idee des Staates Israel in Film und Video, Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin (Dream and Trauma — On the Idea of the State of Israel in Film and Video) (D)
2005 (7.12) Seminar & trailer, Conference: Jüdische Frauen in Geschichte und Gegenwart (Jewish Women in the Past and Present), Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, Wesseling nr. Bonn (D)
2006 (27.2) Peer Critique, trailer, Ben Uri Gallery, The London Jewish Museum (GB)
2006 (5.4.) Professional Practice Seminar with trailer, Fine Art Department, Sheffield Hallam University (GB)
2006 (6.4) Trailer presented in Seminar within Cathy Gelbin’s PhD. Conference course: Gender and Visual Arts, Holocaust Studies, Royal Holloway, London (D)
2006 (6.5. – 18.6.) Jahresausstellung (Yearly exhibition), Kunstverein Rosenheim (D)
2006 (10.5) Körperbilder (Body Images), seminar and video trailer, Kunstverein (Art Centre) Dortmund (D)
2006 (14.8) Promises: DVD projection, solo exhibition, Ben Uri Gallery, The London Jewish Museum (GB)
2006 (29.8. – 31.8.) DVD projection, group exhibition, c.sides festival, International Convention Center, Jerusalem and projection with discussion, Jerusalem Cinematheque, evening of 29.8. (IL)
2006 (6.10. – 27.10) Promised Land: 3 photographs: Beelzebularin and 2 digitally handwritten texts in English and German, Virtual Residency, Galeria Biala, Centrum Kultury, Lublin (PL)
2007 (23.3.) On the online Feminist Art Base: www.brooklynmuseum.org… audio extract (English) from Promised Land„ The Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, The Brooklyn Museum, New York (USA)
2007 (10.3.) Promised Land: Beelzebularin awarded a commendation in the International Jewish Artists of the Year Awards, Ben Uri Gallery, The London Jewish Museum of Art (GB)
2007 (11.3. – 9.4.) Group exhibition, DVD projection, Connected, opening 12 am, Jewish Cultural Days, Altes Museum im BIS-Zentrum (Old Museum in the BIS Centre), Moenchengladbach www.connected-mg.de (D)
2007 (6.11−16.12) Opening 5th November, ending 16th December, Promised Land DVD, group exhibition Diaspora and Troubles curated by Tanya Ury, Kunstbunker Tumulka, Munich (D)
2008 (27.1) Screening with discussion, Anadoma Film/Video-Festival (25. – 27.1), Lot-Theater, Braunschweig www.anadoma.de/ (D)
2009 (30.4−3.5) 17.30 hours — 1st May, screening of Promised Land (German version) with discussion, Limmud Festival, Werbellinsee, Jugenderholungs- und Begegnungsstätte (Youth Relaxation and Meeting Place) (D)
Publications & Press
2005 (12) Interview Isabella Herskovics, Saarländisches Radio (D)
2005 (4.12) Interview Dominik Rzepka, Radio Dom, Cologne (D)
2006 (5.2006) Image of Beelzebularin in Jahresausstellung (yearly exhibition) catalogue, Kunstverein Rosenheim (Art Centre), (D)
2006 (26.8) Interview with Aron Hadar and image: Promised Land: Beelzebularin, Ha’aretz (IL)
2008 (9) Promised Land: 3 photographs: Beelzebularin and 2 digitally handwritten texts in English and German, Virtual Residency catalogue ISBN 978−3−9812208−0−3 (D) www.virtual-residency.…
2008 (11) Beelzebularin discussed in article on Tanya Ury (in German) by Hartmut Bomhoff with image of Beelzebularin, Jüdische Zeitung (monthly), Berlin (D) article as PDF
2009 (1) Anadoma Film/Video-Festival, Braunschweig catalogue, discussion with Florian Krautkrämer on the video Promised Land (pdf) (D)
2009 (4) Image of Beelzebularin in Zeek: A Jewish Journal of Thought and Culture (USA)