march-2012

WORDS BENJAMIN EVANS | PHOTOS © GILAD KAVALERCHIK/FRAU BLAU
THE BUZZ | TEL AVIV ART
Cool Collective
It’s the Year of Art in Israel’s capital and there’s plenty
more to see than just the usual Bauhaus schtick. Discover
an inner-city area where the kibbutz ideal is being revived
TEL AVIV
Down the dusty backstreets south of
the city’s central district, among wig
shops and appliance stores, the hippest
neighbourhood in Tel Aviv awaits the
intrepid cultural tourist.
Once the city’s ‘Electric Garden’,
where workers from the local powerplant
lived, since 2006 Gan Hahashmal,
has welcomed a network of artists
and designers whose cohesive, all-forone
living style, under the name Gan
Hahashmal Collective, has turned an
uncared-for area into the trendiest place
in town – albeit one that’s still slightly
tatty around the edges.
Where once the street vibe was
fraught, graphic artist Yakir Segev,
and one of the area’s key trailblazers,
attests that “the area has become
so much more trendy and relaxed”,
revitalised by an infl ux of indie arty folk
and their quirky boutiques, cool clubs
and DIY art galleries.
Among these is Segev’s own pet
project, Hanina Contemporary Art
(hanina.org), a not-for-profi t,
kibbutz-style art commune set up to
exhibit talent more experimental and
edgy than is typically found in the swish
galleries on Rothschild Boulevard.
Aside from art shows, it serves as a
cultural centre that helps knit the diverse
local community together. Whether
auctioning lost-and-found objects
(proceeds go to a nearby homeless
20 | TRAVELLER
Gan Hahashmal
is home to a young,
trendsetting crowd
“The area has become so much
more trendy and relaxed”
shelter) or off ering free photographic
portraits to neighbours, this is an art
community with dirt under its fi ngernails.
The changes in Gad Hahachmal
refl ect a far bigger shift: the remarkable
transformation of Tel Aviv into a mustvisit
arts destination. This year has seen
the inaugeration of a new Museum of
Art, with the world’s largest collection
of Israeli works, while 2012 has been
offi cially designated the Year of Art’. It
signifi es a real determination on the part
The street vibe is
Levontin casual and 7 is friendly the
place in the to rejuvenated head
for ‘Electric’ a night district
of music
of the city to make its mark as a cultural
powerhouse.
A four-day Art Weekend – from 21-
24 March – will be the highlight of this
period, when the museum will serve as
the hub for a whirlwind of talks, exhibits,
fi lm screenings, tours and open-air dance
performances. On Thursday 22 March, it
will open around the clock for a 24-hourlong
extravaganza.
Amid all this offi cial activity, taking
a breather in Gan Hahashmal will provide