A particularly generative strategy for challenging power structures began with a series of projects, still ongoing, in which she digitizes and animates archeological relics, freeing them from stagnation through alternative (her)stories. Working with female goddesses from 800–600 BCE, Patir renders these enigmatic statuettes as conduits of female agency and feminist reckoning. In her fourteen-minute film Marry Fuck Kill, which features figurines from the archeological wing of the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, the heroine begins to sway to a 1950s pop song. We later learn that her movements correlate with those of the artist’s mother, as rendered through motion-capture technology. Patir fuses autobiographical documentary with 3D-animation to circumvent the pitfalls of cinematic conventions and expand the possibilities of realism. By having her own life experiences enacted by digital “others”—be it historical figures, look-alike representations, or archaeological artifacts—she paradoxically expands our capacity for psychological insight into a selfhood in flux.
Patir received her MFA from Columbia University, New York (2015) and her BFA from the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, Jerusalem (2011). Solo exhibitions include the Israel Pavilion at the 60th Venice Biannale (2024); CCA Tel Aviv-Yafo (2022); OnCurating Projects, Zurich (2021); and Hamidrasha Gallery, Tel Aviv (2018). Her work has been shown, among others, at the 14th Gwangju Biennale; Danspace Project, New York; and the Petach Tikva Museum of Art, Israel. Screenings of her work were held at MoMA, New York; Jerusalem Film Festival; Anthology Film Archive, New York; and more. Patir’s work is in public collections, including the Centre Pompidou, Paris; The Jewish Museum New York; Tel Aviv Museum of Art; The Israel Museum, Jerusalem; and Kadist Foundation, Paris.
As a mentor, Patir is looking for people with a passion to engage in contemporary issues and a curiosity for adventure. “As much as I am happy to share from my knowledge, I am also eager to learn and get inspired,” she says. “And while I am interested in meeting all sorts of practices, to be fair, I might be the most helpful for people working with moving images, storytelling, and new technologies.”
“I am eager to learn about what makes you create and am happy to accompany people who are willing to go on a serendipitous path, as I believe it’s much better not knowing exactly where you are going, but rather let the materials lead the way.”
www.ruthpatir.com
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