From Zion Gate by Jack Persekian
Palestinian artist Jack Persekian studies Jerusalem’s long tumultuous history that has witnessed a succession of takeovers by people and civilizations from the preceding ones. Yet, Jack Persekian presents scenes from the city by superimposing an additional layer – a photograph taken today of the same location, shot from the same spot and angle, over that taken by a photographer some one hundred years ago. Moving between two distinct times allows us to study and compare the changes that occurred over time. In this project, he examines the landscape and forces at play then, now, and possibly in the future.
Every layer of the past has been subjected to some form of destruction in favor of the conquerors and dominant powers. In From Zion Gate, the layers in between the past and present clearly prevail in his works as well as the persistent attempts of the colonial powers to own the city and its history and to remove its people.
