Looking at your current and past paintings, I get a sense of empowerment for the Jewish community. With this said, your art has created a voice for the Jewish community (past and present) and has generated a sort of memorial to the Jewish Diaspora. Besides art, what is another way you would have liked to do so? (ex. music, film, poetry) and do you think it would have been as successful as your inspirational paintings? Recently I gave a talk at the Jewish Museum of Florida and someone said, “But there is so much more in the paintings then what you’re telling us.” Painting is my job and it is what I do best. If I did something else? I would like to bring more fashion into the painting. I think costume and veneer is a beautiful thing, especially when you begin to strip away the layers. I’m actually doing a lot of that in my new work, “The Great Americans.”

List three words that describe your paintings. And three words that describe you as a person. I don’t know about the paintings, but I’m tall, dark, and handsome.

In your series “48 Jews”, you painted portraits of some of the most well-known figures, such as legendary Bob Dylan, Slash, Barry Manilow, counter culture’s Allen Ginsberg, Albert Einstein, Anne Frank, Elvis Presley, etc. Are there any others you would have liked to incorporate into your collection that you didn’t have the opportunity to do so? The series is much larger then 48 paintings. The title “48 Jews” is a conceptual riff off Gerhard Richters 1971 piece “48 Portraits”. There are plenty of figures who make the cut like Zac Efron, Bizzy Bone, and Joseph Stalin, but they are seldom chosen for exhibition. Go figure…

You painted Bob Dylan, so you must be a Dylan fan. What do you find so inspirational about him? And would you like to list some of your favorite songs? I recently saw No Way Home, and was enamored by the young Dylan. I loved how he was a spokesman for the time, yet was conflicted about that role. It really brings home the idea of being labeled.

Your paintings create a sort of mysterious, distorted, haunting and emotional mood, especially your “Martin Buber”, “Richard Feynman”, and “Barry Manilow” paintings. Explain your reason and work process in producing such a mood. I take a lot from artists such as Francis Bacon, Giacometti, and in general the surrealists. A lot of the process comes from layering, and the mood usually comes from use of color a sense of kinetic energy. The creepy power of the unconscious is an amazing force. I guess some of that comes through in the painting.

All of your portraits consist of busts, floating heads, solid backgrounds and gloomy shadowing. Some also resemble a “masked” effect, such as “Bob Dylan”,”Ayn Rand”, & “Neils Bohr”. What was your intention in doing so? Is there a message you’re trying to convey to the audience? The work references both Richter’s “48 Portraits” and Andy Warhol both in style and in concept. The whole idea of the portrait as a bust is just a vehicle, a sort of armature, which the painting is draped over. Like Warhol a lot of these heads on floating backgrounds are talking about the iconic nature of celebrity. The mask takes it a step further and talks about the veneer like quality of celebrity and the layers of identity. 

In articles you listed Andy Warhol’s “10 Portraits of Jews of the 20th century” as one of your influences. In all honesty, do you think you did a better job than Warhol with your “48 Jews?” Why or why not? I’m told it was an influence. The greatest similarity is attention to the iconic nature of celebrity. Except for that, these paintings are doing something very different than Warhol’s. First, Warhol’s “10 Portriats” were critiqued as exploitative since he had no ties to being Jewish it seemed to be just another money making opportunity for him and his dealer. I don’t have that problem, since I am Israeli and Jewish, and am using the series to question my own identity/role in popular culture. Second, Warhols use of the screen print is often seen as a rejection of art history.  My work is a painterly schmorgasborg of technique embracing and build off the whole history of painting. The series also differs from Warhol in its stylistic inconsistency.  Most of the works as individuals are exploring different methods of representation. In a group the individual paintings find a home. In this way each painting has its own identity and is reflecting the myriad identity’s of the subjects.

Many of your paintings resemble the style of Warhol-for example the collage aspect of some of your work.  I find it quite intriguing that you were able to channel his style but add your personal touch to it. Was this purposely done to reflect his influence on you? Stylistic concern is huge for painters. This project starts about Jewish Identity and expands to question my own stylistic identity as a painter. As for the collage like aspect, the work is done all in paint, however I really like bringing attention to surface and veneer… it’s a good metaphor for celebrity.

How much time and effort goes into your painting process? How long did it take you to complete “48 Jews?” I have been working on the project for almost 3 years. Since it’s an open ended project with new subjects coming in and new versions of old subjects being painted, I’m not sure when it will end. 

What else are you trying to express to other groups besides the Jewish community? How do you think it influences other cultures? My work is about the layers of identity. It is also about pop culture. I think everyone can relate to that.

Where is your ideal place to paint? Least favorite? I only paint in my studio. Every now and then I fantasize about being a plein air painter. I picture myself on the Coney Island boardwalk eating funnel cake all day, enjoying the beach and pretending to paint. I doubt I would get any work done and painting in public gives me the creeps.

Which Jewish figure do you find most inspirational (doesn’t necessarily have to be from your series)? Anne Frank is the most inspirational for me. She was 11 when she wrote her diary, in the most horrible of circumstances. If that’s not enough, she then edited it! Its through the multiple versions of her Diary that we get this amazing picture of a maturing artist. All this before she turned 13.

In general, how would you describe your art style? US Weekly meets Gustav Klimt.

When would you say was the first time that you realized your passion for art? My father was a doctor but also very good painter in his own right. He was the premier painter of Pigeons in Tel Aviv and I can remember helping him paint pigeons at a very young age.

If you could meet any painter, dead or alive, who would it be? Why? I would love to meet Rembrandt, but as my mother always says “the dead must remain dead”, it just wouldn’t be right to bring him back.

I understand you currently reside in Brooklyn. What is your favorite thing about it? Least favorite? And is there any other place you would like to live in your lifetime? I love Brooklyn. The overwhelming amount of culture at your fingertips is astounding. The food is amazing too, there is a great breakfast counter next to my studio that has amazing donuts and ice cream donut sandwiches.

What is one thing that appalls you about some painters today? Appalls is a strong word. To be appalled you have to be very close to something. Usually if Im appalled, its by something I have done in my own studio.

Who are some of your favorite musical artists? Least? Notorious BIG and Wagner, I also used to be into the early punk scene. 

If someone took away your brush and canvas, what would you do? First I would cry, then I would get even.

It is said that a picture is worth a million words. What would you say your paintings are worth? A trip to see them.

What does a typical day look like for you? Wake up early, do some writing, exercise, do some paperwork. By that point its noon and I might start painting. If Im stuck I start by organizing my pallet. Im lucky if I get any real painting done by 3, usually the best painting happens after 7, and the really good decisions happen late at night. I paint until 1 or 2, clean my brushes and pass out.

What are some of your guilty pleasures? I just finished listening to the Twilight books on tape. Gag.

Where do you do your most thinking? In the shower. 

Do you know the Muffin Man? I know the Donut lady. 

What are some of your all time favorite films? Anything Bunuel and Jodorowsky. I recently saw ‘Let the Right One In” and liked it.

What do you do besides paint in your free time? Are you more of a busy or home body? Free time?  

What advice would you give to an aspiring artist/painter? Listen to people and take their advice even if you think you know better.

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Interviewed by Stephanie Hernandez. Featured in issue No.5.

(Source: titlemagazine.net)

Posted 9 months ago with 8 notes
Tags: art interview  painting  abshalom jac lahav