ARTIST STATEMENT
EXHIBITION HISTORY
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Statement
Exhibitions
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Artist Statement -



Perfect Moment December 2009
My definition of a Perfect Moment: when two entities, be they human, object, animal, or nature, are able to hold on to their inner core, to the integrity of their identity, yet find a place of connection where they mold to each other creating mutual support.
Why vessels? I have been attracted to vessels since an early age. I grew up in a country where archeology is everywhere, where holding a piece of clay from a broken vessel awakens the imagination. Who was that person that created that container hundreds or thousands of years ago? What was stored in this vessel? Food, coins, stories? What secrets?
To me vessels are a metaphor for anything that contains a treasure, be it tangible or emotional, spiritual. Here are two entities captured in a perfect moment of connection sharing, if only for that brief moment, their inner treasures.

Technique
I work with clay as a carver. I mix various clays, of different textures and colors, to achieve the look of an archeological vessel that has been reassembled. I begin with a solid mound of clay and use my body, a mallet and knives to rough the form. When I’m satisfied with what has appeared I let it dry for a while letting it harden to a point that it can be hollowed out without collapsing.
At this point I refine the design, perfect the lines and create the surface I’m interested in – textured or burnished. Now the piece is put aside to rest, to get used to its new form, allowed to dry slowly (4-6 weeks depending on the weather). The work is now ready to be fired.
I fire very slowly (about 10 hours) to cone 2 and let the kiln cool down for 24 hours before I open it. This is when the finishing steps happen; at this point I either use cold patina (using water soluble pigments as stains) or liquid wax.

Artist Exhibitions



Solo Exhibitions
2006 - Craft & Cultural Arts Gallery, “Seen. Unseen.”, California State Building, Oakland, California, USA, Sept-Oct. 2006
2003 - Christensen-Heller Gallery, “Soaring Stone”, Oakland, California, USA, Sept-Oct. 2003

Invitational
2005 - Veriditas, “Dream Quest”, Grace Cathedral, San Francisco, California, USA
2004 - “Sing for Your Life - Altars”, First Congregational Church, Oakland, California, USA
2003 - artSFest 2004, Benefit event, Mill Valley, California, USA
- City of Oakland, Office of the Mayor, Oakland Cultural Affairs Commission, Artist Presentation, California, USA
2002 - ARTSHIP Foundation, Windows on the Water at Jack London Sq., Oakland, California, USA
2001 - Park Day School, "Secret Gardens of the East Bay", Oakland, California, USA
1999 - ARTSHIP Foundation, The Windows on the Water at Jack London Sq., Oakland, California, USA
1996 - The Oakland Art Chamber of Commerce, Tuesday Art Series, Oakland, California, USA

Selected Group Exhibitions
2009 – Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts, “Future Landscapes Designed by Women/Paisajes del
Futuro Diseñado por Mujeres”, San Francisco, California, USA
2007 - ACCI Gallery, “Obsession – Works of Passion and Fire”, Berkeley, California, USA
- Upstream People Gallery, “9th Annual Faces International Online Juried Art Exhibition”,
www.upstreampeoplegallery.com
- ACCI Gallery, “Somebody”, Berkeley, California, USA
- Orinda Art Center, “Women as Prophets”, Orinda, California, USA
2006 - Prescott-Joseph Center, “Expect Respect”, Oakland, California, USA
2005 - Taking The Leap, “Deciphering the Code”, Emeryville, California, USA
2004 - Pacific Rim Sculptors Group, “California Dreaming”, Juried by John Toki. San Francisco, California, USA
2003 - Pacific Rim Sculptors Group, 600 Townsend, Juried by Brigitte Micmacker & John Dennings, San Francisco, California, USA
- Pacific Rim Sculptors Group at The Ruth Bancroft Garden, Walnut Creek, California, USA
2002 - Craft & Cultural Arts Gallery, "Oakland Portraits Then and Now, 1852-2002”, Oakland, California, USA
- Pacific Rim Sculptors Group at The Ruth Bancroft Garden, Walnut Creek, California, US
2001 - Clos Pegase Winery & Gallery, “Art for America”, art exhibition and auction benefiting victims of 9/11, Calistoga, California, USA
- Oakland Art Gallery, "Reconstructing Reality, Artists Response to 9/11", Oakland, California, USA
- Mill Valley Sculpture Garden Gallery, "Wind and Water", Mill Valley, California, USA
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Artist Publications



"I'm writing to express my appreciation for your work as a sculptor. The pieces I have seen...have a quality that transcends conventional artistic categories: you have given them the power to evoke a rich and productive anxiety in the viewer, a rare artistic achievement. You have expressed the tensions and possibilities of equilibrium in a fresh, affecting fashion." Arlene Goldbard, Adams & Goldbard, Richmond, CA, 1.25.04

"In the current Pacific Rim Sculptors Group exhibition, entitled 'California Dreaming', a group of artists mirror a great sense of freedom of expression courage, tradition, and experimentation... Some of the highlighted works are: ... 'Stone Flower <7', a bold alabaster piece by Zahava Sherez, includes more formal aspects of sculpture. The overall quality of the art work submitted was outstanding." Pacific Rim Sculptors Group, 'California Dreaming', Winter Exhibition 2004, January-March 2004, San Francisco, John Toki, Juror. This is an excerpt from the juror's statement.

"This beautiful orange flower vibrates slightly. Alive, flexible and wise. Soft and smooth to the touch. The flower, however, is two feet across, with petals of translucent alabaster, and the stem on which it delicately shivers is sturdy metal. Thus is your perception of stone forever changed. Such is the nature of Zahava Sherez's sculptures." Bay Area Business Woman, Vol.10 No.3, December 2002.

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Artist Collections



Collectors (selected)
UPAYA, Center for Wellbeing, Oakland, California, USA
Dr,.E,.Karpfinger & Dr. A. Rosselle, Oakland, California, USA
Ms. Nancy Philips, Oakland, California, USA
Ms. Rani Cochran, Redwood City, California, USA
Ms. Jesy Goldhammer, Oakland, California, USA
Ms. A Rockwell, Oakland, California, USA
Ms. D. Leavitt, Berkeley, California, USA
Mr. & Mrs. Caya, Fairfield, California, USA
Ms. Cotton & Mr. Pattison, Berkeley, California, USA
Mr. & Mrs. Inon, Tel Aviv, Israel
Ms. M. Citron, Fairfield, Connecticut, USA
Dr. & Mrs. E. Wilson, Carmel, California, USA
Ms. L. Weinnberg, Pebble Beach, California, USA
Mr. G. Gershoni, San Francisco, California, USA
Mr. & Mrs. N. Meland, San Francisco, California, USA
Mr. & Mrs. R. Zeinstejer, Rosario, Argentina
Mr. & Mrs. O. Catania, Cordoba. Argentina
Mr. & Mrs. C. Weiss, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Argentools Ltd., Tel Aviv, Israel
Mr. & Mrs. J. Schlesinger, Tel Aviv, Israel
Mr. & Mrs. S. Sherez, Tel Aviv, Israel
Mr. J. Stein, Tel Aviv, Israel
Mr. & Mrs. J. Birner, Melbourne, Australia
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Artist Favorites