Mythologies and legends have been a great inspiration for artists, writers and poets from ancient times to the present day. The stories of the Gods were described in various religions as a form of faith, allegory, and sometimes as mere...
moreMythologies and legends have been a great inspiration for artists, writers and poets from ancient times to the present day. The stories of the Gods were described in various religions as a form of faith, allegory, and sometimes as mere doctrines. Ofer Zick, industrial designer and an artist, continues a long tradition of classical artists throughout the ages. His large-scale works and the combination of academic technique with mythological subjects strike the viewer with astonishment. A second glance at his works reveals that the mythological issues, familiar at first sight-Leda and the Swan, Achilles heel, the mythological twins Remus and Romulus, Centaur and Venus-Pieta-had been changed in appearance and content in order to accommodate Zick's perceptions on relationships, power, jealousy, love and hurt. Zick, who began to draw as a child, majored his studies in industrial design1 and returned to the art of painting 35 years later, when he moved with his family to the United States. A random visit to a gallery and an acquaintance with the "Larger-Than-Life" association brought Zick back to painting when he was commissioned for an artwork to the "Larger-Than-Life" association's annual exhibition. The painting "Adam and Eve" (Fig. 1)2 was the first step for the creation a serie of paintings dealing with various aspects of male-female relationships. The first painting, on which he began to work on since 1999 until 2013, received the title "Walking on Eggs" (Fig. 2)3. The work depicts a man walking after a woman. The "characters" are not figurative in the classic definition of their descriptions, but their gender can be identified by the attributes that were added to them-the "man", adorned with reindeer rays, is following the image of the "woman" identified by the red high heels shoes "she" is wearing. The surface they are walking on is covered with light colored eggs. The source for the painting is a sketch that Ofer did for a sculptural work. In this work, although performed on canvas, the "painter's designer" can still be discerned. In order to "cleanse" up from the designer, Ofer made a conscious choice to approach the figurative world. The painting "Leda" (Fig. 3)4 reflects the process of disengagement from the world of design and the appeal to the art world. 1 1. Zick graduated, with a bachelor degree (B.
