Original project by Israeli artist deconstructs antisemitic hate
An exhibit featuring young women aims to raise awareness of the fact that words have meanings and their usage comes with real world consequences
To the backdrop of the ongoing war, artist Roni Kadesh created an innovative project, inspired by the floodgates of the antisemitic hatred that have opened up in the aftermath of the October 7 massacre. Through photos and videos, she deconstructs prejudices and attacks against the Jewish and Israeli people. This visual project aims to raise public awareness of the choice of words, their scope and their meaning, warning of the danger of ignorance and its consequences.
“What really astonished us was seeing so many people spend their days spewing ignorant empty words and outright hatred – whether on social media, on college campuses or on the streets. In many ways they are more frightening than the Hamas terrorists, they are dangerous because they deprive us of the meaning of words and thus kill the truth," said Roni Kadesh.
"No Israeli or Palestinian can take them seriously. Some of them are idiots, while others simply didn't get enough attention from their parents. That's why we created the ICRW - The International Committee for the Reclamation of Words, to provide them with the mirror they needed and remind everyone that every word counts," she continues.
In collaboration with an exceptional team of writers, photographers, editors and designers, Roni developed her project. In the videos where models are featured, Roni inserts “shock phrases” and revisits the slogans used by anti-Israel propagandists. This advocacy project stands out because it is first and foremost artistic, with visual emphasis and a clear and impactful message.
On the works we can see: “Awake the woke” written on a night mask for the eyes, a book entitled “How to hate jews in 2024” or “Tears for Palestine" written on a box of tissues. All these slogans are then repackaged to convey messages favorable to Israel, to silence those who use them in order to fuel anti-Semitic hatred.
"During the war, I withdrew into myself with a terrible feeling of helplessness in the face of everything that was happening. I went to bed every night feeling like I wasn't contributing enough to the war effort and I couldn't take it anymore," Kadesh told i24NEWS.
"I was stunned by the distortion of reality and the twisting of words and concepts that people have adapted to an anti-Israel narrative. I wondered if the people who march in protests and shout 'From the river to the sea' understand that they are calling for the destruction of the Jewish state. I also wondered whether those who conceive of themselves 'woke' but justify rape under the guise of 'resistance' and whether academics enlightened people financed by the rich of the Arab world perfectly understand the content, words and concepts they use,” she says.
Kadesh says to have wanted to target as a priority the anti-Israel demonstrators mobilized across Europe, North America and elsewhere.
"First, I wanted to reach academics with their biased opinions, women's groups that remained silent on the mass rape of Israeli women by Hamas, and anyone who promoted anti-Israeli content on the Internet. Then I've gradually realized that it was important that Israelis also discover this project," Kadesh says.
"Ultimately, I also address my works to Israeli artists, and to the entire nation, to show that there is content explained from a different angle, for the benefit of national consciousness and in the hope that our pride is not extinguished," concluded Roni.
The project can be discovered on Roni's Instagram page Thefuyastudios and also on her website. It was produced in collaboration with Les Studios Fuya, Bar Maor, Yaron Brizman, Adam Horvitch, Noga Reved, Ronny Levi-Elinsky, Chen Pearl, Ora Mincheva, Tara Hayot, Karin Eckerling, David Laxer, Noy Huri, Eden Adel Schneider, Orit Sabbag and Hagalil 1.
Caroline Haïat is a journalist with i24NEWS' French site