Yesterday, 2020

Cast Basalt

192x140x9 cm

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Littwitz alludes to Karavan's iconic wall relief Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem, installed on the southern wall of the Knesset (the unicameral national legislature of Israel) , behind the speakers and orators; a witness to laws being debated and agreements signed; to democracy being celebrated but also attacked. Via a geometric array of local landscapes—wadis, mounds, valleys, and domes—Karavan perpetuates Israeli scenery using limestone, light and shade. Created in 1966, this relief also commemorates a moment in the timeline of the optimistic young nation upon inauguration of the official Knesset building and the hopes pinned on it.

Referring directly to Karavan's composition, Littwitz replaces the limestone with cast black basalt. Formed by the cooling of lava, the basalt is the result of powerful subterranean forces which erupt onto the surface from amid the cracks that occur between tectonic plates. The basalt on the wall was disciplined and reorganized—shredded, melted, and cast in molds—but the memory of the sizzling material is still discernible therein.

 

Vardit Gross

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Produced and supported by Artport residency, Tel Aviv