I was meant to visit the exhibition "The Spark" by Work Off Art at the beginning of March, but of course it was closed due to the war with Iran. I finally got there in mid-April, and I'm so glad I did. The exhibition was curated by Ya'ara Sachs, who was also behind the groundbreaking Pop-Up Museum TLV, among other projects. As explained in one of the wall texts, the exhibition's title, "The Spark", refers to that very moment when the spark is lit - the force that drives artists and individuals to keep creating, dreaming, and illuminating their surroundings, even in times of personal and collective crisis. It was Sachs's final exhibition in Israel before opening her first international show abroad.
The exhibition is being held in the former Tara factory in Tel Aviv's central business district, once home to one of Israel's best-known dairy companies. Over time, as the dairy industry moved out of central Tel Aviv to other locations, the original factory land became highly valuable for redevelopment.
Before the site is redeveloped into large-scale residential and office towers, dozens of artists have transformed 43 rooms and office spaces into a multi-room immersive art experience. Each room reflects an artist's personal "spark". The result is a rich, colourful journey through video art, installations, sculpture and sound.
Rooms were filled with animals, knives floating in space, and areas packed with hands and furry creatures. There were giant flowers made from pipe cleaners, a music machine powered by a compressor and a party blower, a childhood room seen from a unique angle, a giant aquarium, and a large, ominous block suspended in the air. A personal favourite was Shelly Picha's room, above, where she transformed words, names, and prayers into a calligraphic space of memory and healing.
Rotem Michaeli's "Planted Here" was a soft, colourful space built from pipe cleaners. Tall flowers swayed in a gentle breeze, their constant movement highlighting the fragility of life and reality - in Israel, always, and especially today. The room offered a quiet hope that even what seems fragile and delicate is capable of blooming. It was created in memory of the artist's sister.
This room made my friend and me stop for a moment. At first glance, it seemed to tell a story of pain, of hostages, and of war. But the shadow on the wall revealed a shift - when struggle turns into hope, and hope becomes reality. We left feeling a little more hopeful.
Caroline Attoun's work reflected on how reading sparks her imagination. When she feels uninspired, she turns to books, where even a small detail - a minor character or a single sentence - can suddenly ignite new ideas. For her, reading opens up space for imagination, allowing a whole world to form beyond the written words. The work captured that moment of "falling into" a book, when text and imagination meet and creativity begins.
Studio Plan B (Maya and Max Gat-Mor) created an installation composed of sharp metal knives, suspended in a precise and harmonious structure. "Hanging by a Thread" was created after 7th October and it explored the fragile line between constant danger and moments of calm and beauty.
Sapir Ashkenazi’s room reflected on her teenage years, when she often felt caught between loneliness and connection, and between uncertainty and belonging. To calm herself, she would go to the University Railway Station and watch Tel Aviv's city skyline, mesmerised by the glowing buildings and the sense of something larger than herself.
Kobi Osher's "Through the Fracture" used concrete as a central material. A massive, cracked block appeared to float in space. From within the cracks burst light and richness - symbols of creation, life, and small moments of hope. The piece was clearly a metaphor for the weight and pressure we create in our own minds, which in truth carry no real mass.
Another favourite of mine, perhaps because they used paper, were Natalia Volkov's figures of animals native to Israel. They were built from photographs of everyday moments and familiar Israeli landscapes that inspire her. These ordinary moments of architecture and daily life were transformed into living forms, reflecting both the fragility and resilience of Israel's landscapes and the rhythm of life within them.
A number of artworks were displayed in the factory's courtyard. Anna Kogan created an anamorphic sculpture from everyday objects, which from a single viewpoint revealed a portrait of Elon Musk. The sculpture evoked his childhood room in South Africa, where he found refuge in science fiction books, comics, computer games, and encyclopaedias. From those worlds of imagination, a spark emerged - one that turned the boy into a man who dreamed of leading humanity to other planets. As we moved around the piece, the image constantly shifted, showing how perspective changes everything: what seemed ordinary or broken revealed something entirely new. It was a powerful play on perspective, imagination, and inspiration.
Finally, Elad Elyakim's piece "Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life" used an eight-metre-high lift shaft in the old Tara factory. The large-scale work featured white Hebrew typography on a black background, with letters intersecting and intertwining to fill the entire surface. It continued Elyakim's practice of giving discarded spaces and objects new life through painted words and letters.
"The Spark" is a moving and thought-provoking exhibition that I really enjoyed. The works show how inspiration can come even in a difficult and complex reality, and I connected with many of the pieces, which were both interesting and thought-provoking. It seems that sometimes, all it takes to keep going is one small spark.
One of my recent commissions came from a customer who wanted a special birthday
card for her niece, Rebecca. The brief was simple. The card was to feature her
dog, Teddie, and include a large "27" somewhere in the design. My customer sent
me a couple of photos of Teddie, and I got to work.
The card was fun to create and was very well received. My customer was keen to
share that her niece adored the card!
Back in February, Mister Handmade in Israel and I went to the
Peres Center for Peace and Innovation
in the port city of
Jaffa
to hear the artist
Zeev Engelmayer
speak about his artistic work and activism. Working under the creative persona "Shoshke", Engelmayer is known in Israel for his ongoing illustrated "Daily Postcard" project. Through these drawings, he responds to current events, politics, and social issues with honesty and insight. I have followed his postcards closely since the outbreak of the war and was keen to
hear what he had to say about them.
Since the 7th of October, when Hamas terrorists attacked Israel's Gaza border
communities, killing thousands, committing atrocities, and abducting hundreds,
Shoshke has been drawing his interpretation of the day's distressing events on
a regular basis. Although he has now turned his attention to larger projects, during the
war he would sit each morning at a small kitchen table in his Tel Aviv
apartment overlooking the Florentin neighbourhood and create his "Daily
Postcards", depicting hostages, soldiers, and mourners. He portrayed the
Bibas family
- mum Shiri, dad Yarden, and red-haired preschoolers Ariel and baby Kfir - as
well as 80-year-old
Yaffa Adar, a
released hostage, riding home in a heart-festooned golf cart with ballerinas
alongside her. In other works, Mary Poppins magically brings hostages home
beneath floating parasols, while in another, child hostages travel on a
rainbow from Gaza to Tel Aviv, above. He also responded to the daily reports
of soldiers killed in Gaza and, more recently, in Lebanon. Shoshke's colourful A4-sized "Daily Postcards" capture the horror, fear, and sorrow of the war, but they also offer a different way of engaging with the day's unfolding reality. Through humour, emotion, and illustration, he approached painful subject matter in a way that can bring a sense of comfort. The public
responded immediately, sending messages and requests for him to tell the
stories of their loved ones. We also asked whether he would consider
portraying
Gadi's story, though that now seems unlikely. I was pleased to be able to purchase
one of Shoshke's prints, and now have it framed and ready to hang on the wall
as soon as I find the right spot for it.
The Hebrew text reads: "Today all the hostages are returning home"
Since losing Gadi, neither Mister Handmade in Israel nor I have really been in
the mood to listen to music. However, we were recently given tickets for a
tribute performance to Naomi Shemer at the Cameri Theatre in Tel Aviv, and we
decided to give it a go. Naomi Shemer was an iconic Israeli songwriter,
composer, and performer who, in her own words, wrote "a thousand songs and one
more". The tribute evening was curated by her son, the acclaimed musician
Ariel Horowitz. The
show was a musical journey through her well-known Hebrew songs, interwoven with
personal stories about her life and working process. It featured songs she wrote
and composed herself, poems by other writers she chose to set to music, and
songs she translated. These include Lu Yehi (Let It Be),
Al Kol Eleh (For All These Things), and the
Six-Day War anthem
Yerushalayim Shel Zahav (Jerusalem of Gold), among others. The
Israeli actress, comedian and television presenter Rivka Michaeli, Naomi
Shemer's close friend, appeared on stage alongside Tamar Giladi, Shemer's
daughter-in-law and Ariel Horowitz's wife, and Lali Shemer, her daughter. Each
of them shared small anecdotes from Shemer's life. Together, they offered a
personal and intimate glimpse behind the scenes of the woman often regarded as
the First Lady of Hebrew Song. It was a moving evening that celebrated
Shemer's extraordinary body of work, and we both thoroughly enjoyed it. Although
she passed away more than twenty years ago, in 2004, her songs continue to live
on.
Photo by Boris Carmi, courtesy of the Meitar Collection, Pritzker Family National Photography Collection, National Library of Israel
A Tribute to Naomi Shemer at the Cameri Theatre - singer Adi
Cohen performs “Jerusalem of Gold”
Lilach celebrated her birthday in early January. Her husband sent me this
lovely photo of her and asked if I could create one of my "amazing cards" (his
words!) to mark her special day.
I carefully recreated Lilach's dark green dress, including the tiny gold
buttons on the cold-shoulder sleeves. I also captured her blonde hair and blue
eyes, and added little stars cut out to surround the sparkler placed on the
table in front of her.
Lilach's daughter also asked me to create a birthday card for her mum! She told
me her mum enjoys going to the gym and visiting spas. At the gym, she works out
with dumbbells and loves running. At the spa, she enjoys relaxing and getting
massages. She's also really into mindfulness and likes reading books on the
subject. And, as a fun little detail, her daughter mentioned that her mum loves
smoked salmon - so she thought it would be funny to include that on the
card.
I decided to show Lilach working out with dumbbells while dreaming of a
relaxing massage. Next to her, I included
The Mindfulness Book and a plate of
smoked salmon. Her daughter also mentioned that Lilach loves wearing jeans
paired with a T-shirt or jumper, and that her favorite colours right now are
blue and pink. With all these details, Lilach's outfit was complete!
Lilach was really happy to receive both cards and told me that she was excited
to have her own "Lisa cards". She shared the photo I have added to this post
on Facebook, writing "In the photo are my birthday cards made by the very
talented Lisa Isaacs."
I cannot finish this post without acknowledging the Hamas war on Israel.
On Monday 26th January, the body of Ran Gvili was recovered and identified. Ran, an Israeli police sergeant, was the last hostage held in Gaza. After 843 days, his body was finally brought home. All hostages taken into Gaza have now been brought back to Israel. The clock in Hostage Square, which marked every minute and second since 7th October 2023, has finally stopped. We can breathe again, but relief and grief sit side by side. For 87 families of fallen hostages, 7th October will never truly end. The same is true for the families of hundreds of civilians who were murdered in their homes, towns and communities during Hamas's brutal attack, along with the many fallen soldiers, heroes who gave their lives to protect us and to bring them home. The road ahead will be long. But at least they are now home.
I am a graphic designer by profession who has gone 'back to basics' and I love anything handmade. I enjoy working with paper and other materials, and am always excited to try new projects.
.png)
