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BRINGING BACK THE LIGHT: THE VISUAL JOURNALS OF THE WOMEN OF KIBBUTZ BE’ERI© 2025, DAVID BENRIMON FINE ART THE FULLER BUILDING 41 EAST 57TH STREET, 2ND FLOOR NEW YORK, NY 10022 INFO@BENRIMON.COM WWW.DAVIDBENRIMON.COM 212-628-1600 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS We gratefully acknowledge the organizations and individuals whose support and collaboration brought this exhibition to life. Your contributions — in time, resources, and heart — have made a lasting impact. This exhibition would not have been possible without your belief in the healing power of art, resilience, and community. WITH SPECIAL THANKS TO: David Benrimon Fine Art Etai Gross Fire Island Minyan Havurah Manhattan Jewish Experience Studio Verhaftig-Venezian Barbara Duberstein and Danny Goldman, Exhibition Producers Dr. Batsheva Ida Lindsay Gruzglin, Exhibition Curator Sara and Scott Harris Rakefet Berger, Liora Agam, and Tal Berdachevski, who helped us facilitate the Beeri groups for more than a year! With deepest appreciation – The Be’eri Women Rakefet Hadar, Exhibition CuratorAt 7am we were informed, Yochi Alon ................................................................................................................................10 From Darkness to Light, Yochi Alon ..................................................................................................................................13 Daydreaming, Mazzi Behar z”l ......................................................................................................................17 Our lives are scattered everywhere, Mazzi Behar z”l ......................................................................................................................18 Alone, Hana Brin ...................................................................................................................................23 The Chain of Generations, Hana Brin ...................................................................................................................................24 Creating Illusion?, Hana Brin ...................................................................................................................................27 The dove above the peace and tranquility of Ein Gedi, Rivka Bira ...................................................................................................................................28 the Mysteries of the Aching Heart, Rivka Bira ...................................................................................................................................31 My Name, Michal Cohen ..........................................................................................................................32 The Magic Chain, Michal Cohen ..........................................................................................................................35 Summer’s Compassion, Aliza Gad .....................................................................................................................................36 The Princess Through the Lens, Aliza Gad .....................................................................................................................................41 Vintage in the Present, Aliza Gad .....................................................................................................................................42 Facing Hope, Vered Gold ................................................................................................................................45 lawlessness, Vered Gold ................................................................................................................................46 Longing, Vered Gold ................................................................................................................................49 Through the Heart, Ella Greenstein .......................................................................................................................50 Rest, Ella Greenstein .......................................................................................................................53 How Trauma Shapes Us, Rakefet Hadar .........................................................................................................................54 What happens when you lose your words? Rakefet Hadar, .......................................................................................................................59 TABLE OF CONTENTSI Stand in the Middle, Maayana Hershkowitz z”l .............................................................................................60 The Joy of Distance, Maayana Hershkowitz z”l .............................................................................................65 My Friends, Lea Kapitanov .........................................................................................................................66 Who Knows?, Lea Kapitanov .........................................................................................................................69 From the Valley of Death to Life, Perach Philo .............................................................................................................................70 The moment I broke down, Perach Philo .............................................................................................................................73 Dream, Batya Segev ..............................................................................................................................74 Longing for The Four, Batya Segev ..............................................................................................................................77 How many are no longer with us!, Shoshka Steinhardt ............................................................................................................78 Shining Light on This Era, Shoshka Steinhardt ............................................................................................................81 Monsters, Orit Svirski z”l .........................................................................................................................82 The Language of Togetherness Orit Svirski z”l .........................................................................................................................85 Untitled 1, Orit Svirski z”l, .......................................................................................................................87 Untitled 2, Orit Svirski z”l, .......................................................................................................................90 Dear World, YOU SHATTERED FOR US | Here in the Dark the House Burns, Anat Tavori ................................................................................................................................93 For the sake of our children, Anat Tavori ................................................................................................................................96 Don’t Agree to Get Used to It, Talia Dvori Yamin .................................................................................................................99 To Look Straight and See , Talya Dvori Yamin, ............................................................................................................100 In the Past on the Ground and in the Present in the Sky, Zippi Zorea ..............................................................................................................................103 Tea Party, Zippi Zorea ..............................................................................................................................104 We are all together, Shared work ...........................................................................................................................107Bringing Back the Light: The Visual Journals of the Women of Be’eri This exhibition presents the works of a group of women survivors from Be’eri, who met for eight months in an open studio, working with facilitators using the “SoulPages” method of visual journaling. Their creations document these women’s inner worlds—women who survived the “October 7th massacre” and have since been living under continuous warfare, displacement, and daily experiences of profound emotional upheaval. They were first introduced to visual journaling through their friends, the late Orit Savirsky and Anat Tavori, who established a SoulPages journaling group in Be’eri in 2018. The original group consisted of seven women, three of whom were murdered on October 7th: Orit Savirsky, Maayana Hershkovitz, and Mazi Bachar (may their memory be a blessing). The works they created—collected by their families from WhatsApp messages and Facebook posts (since the original works were burned on October 7)—are showcased here alongside the creations of the remaining members of the group. Together, they reflect the power of living creativity, which endures as an expression of these women’s souls and spirits. For months, the group members worked in their journals, expressing deep longing, unrelenting fear, unbearable pain, and the desire to experience small moments of light. Together, they formed a women’s collective that became a source of mutual support—a place where they could speak or remain silent, cry or rejoice, and above all, dare to play and create. Visual journaling is built around seven simple elements: intention, magical coincidence, background, color, image, line, and text. It is a therapeutic art form that offers each person a bridge inward and a pathway toward healing. The tremendous strength of this courageous group of women lies in their ability to document, through color and imagery, the first few months of the inferno—the most harrowing event in our lives since the Holocaust. Accompanying these works, you will find words written by each artist about her creations—words that attempt to describe and thus gently touch the hearts of others, conveying what defies description. These pieces “bring back the light” into their lives—and into ours—providing a glimpse into the inner worlds of women who experienced the worst and survived with profound resilience.What is the Visual Journal? Ten years ago, I discovered the visual journal, and it changed my life. It brought joy into my days and connected me to a fountain of creativity that had been waiting inside me to be revealed! I developed the “SoulPages” method to allow as many people as possible to experience the power of creation— to reconnect with passion, joy, and healing energy. My method is built on seven simple elements: intention, magical coincidence, background, images, color, line, and text. Over the past year, together with fellow facilitators, I reached hundreds of displaced women and survivors of the October 7th massacre. Through the “Bringing Back the Light” project, we shared the healing power of the visual journal with them. This exhibition opens a window into the inner worlds of these survivors, showcasing the strength and hope that creative work brings. Rakafat Hadar https://visualjournal.co.ilNext >