Catalog of a Collection of Photographs by Gérard Allon in the Judaica Collection of the Harvard library

Figure 12: From the film Ha-Hagorah shel No‘omi (Naomi’s Corset), 2004.
interest towards video installations as another possibility of imaging
and representation. The residual effect of these can be strongly felt in
his new video creations, where he uses split screens that offer viewers
several vantage points simultaneously, thus allowing different interpretations
of the works.
Among Allon’s more recent achievements are two films that have
brought him a well-deserved international recognition. The documentary
Naomi’s Corset (2004) is based on the ordeal his daughter
Naomi went through in a series of difficult surgical operations to correct
a serious case of scoliosis. This deeply moving document unavoidably
carries traces of elements from the cinéma vérité so familiar
to him. However, it deals with a new vernacular, that of video art,
which, through staged and manipulated scenes, questions the sober
and realistic imagery that is the very essence of cinéma vérité. Allon’s
film was awarded the jury’s special mention at the FIPA (International
Festival of Audiovisual Programs) in 2005 (Figure 12).
His second film, Fragments, is neither a documentary nor a feature. It
asks questions and seeks answers without necessarily finding any,
which has always been characteristic of Allon’s creative activity and
prolific mind. His questioning has long transcended the personal level
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