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דפנה קפמן: מקומיות שבירה

Dafna Kaffeman: Fragile Land


  • Date iconMay 14 2025
  • Curator: Ruth E. Jackson-Tal
  • Designer: Jonathan Canetti Greenshlag
  • Glass Pavilion, Bronfman Archaeology Wing
  • Artist: Dafna Kaffeman

The works of contemporary artist Dafna Kaffeman, which have been integrated into the exhibition of ancient glass, revive the local glass industry, which until the beginning of the 20th century was one of the important traditional crafts in the country. In her works, Kaffeman uses contemporary glass rods and ancient raw glass chunks found in excavations to recreate wheat, thorns, the red everlasting ("blood of the Maccabees") flower, local acacia and pine trees, and even the Oriental hornet, a species that has inhabited the region since ancient times.  

From budding and blooming to wilting and withering, these delicate creations are moments frozen in time; they are portrayed with extreme realism, but will never grow again. The display touches upon the contrast between disappearance and continuity, frailty and resilience, transparency and opacity, memory of the past and the fragile reality of our present lives.

 

 
Dafna Kaffeman, Thorn-Tree Circle, 2025, ancient (6th–7th century CE) glass and furnace waste, flameworked
Collection of the artist
Photo: © Doron Letzter
 
Dafna Kaffeman, Circle of Thorns, 2025, ancient (6th–7th century CE) glass, flameworked
Collection of the artist
Photo: © Doron Letzter
 
Dafna Kaffeman, Regional Typology, 2025, ancient (6th–7th century CE) glass, modern Hebron glass, and contemporary glass, flameworked and blown
Collection of the artist
Photo: © Doron Letzter
 
Dafna Kaffeman, Red Everlasting ("Blood of the Maccabees"), 2025, flameworked glass
Collection of the artist
Photo: © Doron Letzter
 
Dafna Kaffeman, Fractions, 2025, flameworked and blown glass
Collection of the artist
Photo: © Doron Letzter