By Rebeccah Ohayon, Hasbara Fellowships High School Intern
In the worldwide playing field, Israel is a leader in many domains, including innovation, women’s safety, happiness, startups, science, technology, and more. Now, they’re adding art to the growing list with a vibrant art scene, which includes any and all forms of art as well as many young and upcoming artists.
Contributing to the art scene and arguably creating her own new sector is Neri Oxman. The Israeli-American designer was born and raised in Haifa, Israel to a Jewish family. Neri served in the Israeli Defence Forces as a member of the Israeli Air Force before continuing her education. She attended many prestigious schools in Israel such as Hebrew University as a medical student, subsequently switching her school and major two years later for architecture at the world-renowned Technion, before finishing her degree at Architectural Association School of Architecture in London, England. Neri created the Mediated Matter Group, a research group at MIT, where she is a professor. Alongside her team, Neir creates what they call ‘Material Ecology’ which they describe as “a design philosophy, research area, and scientific approach that explores, informs, and expresses interrelationships between the built, the grown, and the augmented.” Neri even starred in her own tv episode on Netflix’s Abstract: The Art and Design (season 2 ep. 2) in which her work and research, as well as aspects of her personal life and how she achieved such success in a groundbreaking field, can be seen. Her work combines material engineering, biology, computing, as well as art and architectural design, to create some of the most unique and beautiful sculptures created out of new materials. All of her team’s designs are environmentally friendly and derived from all-natural products, with the goal of being sustainable and recyclable.
One of her most popular works is “The Silk Pavilion.” The base of the structure was created using a specific algorithm set to mimic a silkworm using a continuous thread, and then 6,500 silkworms were put on the structure to re-enforce it with their silk. Another prominent design is “The Ocean Pavilion,” which is a display of the new material that Neri and her team created. In reaction to the immense amount of plastic waste, they created a new material that is derived of decomposable elements such as Cellulose, chitosan (made with shrimp shells), and pectin (a natural starch found in fruits), which are found in abundance in nature, as well as tree branches, insect exoskeletons, fruits, and even human bones.
I think it’s safe to say that Neri Oxman is one of the most innovative artists and researchers, not only in Israel but around the world, and is definitely someone to keep your eye on. Who knows what innovative projects and ideas she has up her sleeve?
For more information about Neri Oxman, you can visit her page on MIT’s site: https://www.media.mit.edu/people/neri/overview/
