Dede, Untitled, 2022, Assemblage, 13.7 x 18.8 inches / 35 x 48 cm
In today’s artwork spotlight we’re featuring two pieces by Dede, with whom we’ve recently started working, after many years we’ve been following his artistic path. Dede has been working in the public sphere since 2006. His work can be viewed at galleries, exhibition spaces and on the streets of art capitals around the world, such as London, New York, Berlin and more.
Urban construction is a constant inspiration for Dede, who frequents construction sites around Tel Aviv to photograph them, and occasionally collect fragments of materials to incorporate in his pieces. The animals in this series are created from pieces of wood and other materials the artist collected from construction sites. He initially started incorporating the animals in his work about a decade ago. At the time his studio was located in Montefiore neighborhood in east Tel Aviv, an area which was going through a rapid gentrification process.
Dede tells Art Source: “The small workshops I was familiar with were replaced with high rises. I would walk around the area and collect scraps from the demolition process. They started piling up in my studio and I experimented with incorporating them in early pieces. I then started painting them as subjects. Over time these random objects took on more layers and meanings, I started painting them together as structures and eventually they evolved into animals. These construction-animals seem to encompass entire cities that they carry with them.”
The animals in Dede’s work are native to Israel, animals that are constantly searching for the next plot of land that can serve as a safe haven.
According to Dede “this reflected the general sense of distress for some members of the local community in the face of gentrification, and specifically unhoused individuals who also collected scraps from construction sites to make temporary shelters.”
These two pieces from the untitled series are made of found wood and cardboard materials, which Dede repurposed along with construction materials like plaster, cement and various adhesives. The textures and layers are reminiscent of the peeling walls that are often part of south Tel Aviv’s architectural landscape, especially in areas that are intended to become the next construction sites.
Inquire about Dede’s artworks here.
Dede, Untitled, 2022, Mixed media
