The ‘Shekhinah’ is synonymous with G-d; it is also the feminine aspect of G-d, which is expressed in the Divine Presence amongst human beings. ‘Shekhinah’ is a feminine word in Hebrew: It means “dwelling”, with the noun-verb force of that word: the act of dwelling, the state of being somewhere. ‘Shekhinah’ is an exile but a lively and joyful one. It is a reminder that there is no division between creation and divinity.
Through this exhibition, Malin Gabriele Kundi is presenting her art for the first time in Slovenia. The Austrian-German Jewish artist and photographer has selected photographs, paintings, sculptures, sound installations and combined them into an interesting artistic reflexion on Kabbalistic notion of Shekhinah in connection to four biblical matriarchs – Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah – as pillars of Jewish family life and tradition. The exhibited works embody various ideas, contemplations, prayers; the heterogeneity of expressive media reveals a unique insight into gender politics, identity and feminist religious practices.
Malin Gabriele Kundi was born in 1963 in Vienna but she has been living and working in Cologne for many years now. Her artistic beginnings go back to 1981, when she passed her exam in photography at a graphic design school in Vienna and started her professional career. From the mid-nineties onwards she increasingly devoted herself to film and television productions. Her attention and creation have always been focused on motifs from nature, portraits, producing documentaries, newsreels, and experimental video art. She is a member of the GEDOK, the famous German association of women artists from different genres; she initiated the establishing of the ‘FemmeART’ gallery, which was exclusively meant for the presentation and promotion of female artists. She has been working as a freelance artist and a photographer since 2004.
The exhibition will be opened by Prof. Dr. Borut Holcman in the scope of the project European Day of Jewish Culture that is in this year devoted to the topic of ‘Women in Judaism’. The cultural programme at the opening will be featured by the Klezmer music group Kontra-Kvartet from Maribor.
The project was supported by the Post of Slovenia, German Embassy to Slovenia and Municipality of Maribor.
