About Hillel Zhenwirth
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The bubble
My name is Hillel Zehnwirth, and I live in a bubble. In my bubble, I am the main actor, the director, and the producer. I am the absolute truth and God. Occasionally, reality annoys, disturbs, and distorts the bubble. The bubble is a mirror of reality, a reflection of reality and culture. My self-image is often different from how people see me; my internal mirror distorts reality. I have an obsession with the human eye; the eye is a bubble in itself, a mirror into the soul.
We are born without consciousness, and slowly the environment changes us; everything pulls in its own direction, trying to sculpt us in its image. For a child, the parents are his gods, then come friends and culture. Small replicas of the parents and the environment. One is connected to the other with strong, invisible, unbreakable cables. In reflection, I look into the past and see the long path to the soul.
I can promise you something similar but different from anything you've seen before. An experience that is funny and sad at the same time. Maybe you'll love me, maybe you'll hate me forever! Or both, who knows. I have no pretensions, but I still try to go as far as I can before I drop dead.
Well, if you've made it this far, I thank you; it wasn't simple. If for some reason you are still curious, I would be happy to include you in the bubble....
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Hillel Zhenwirth
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from the opeining speech
Welcome, and thank you for joining me today. This exhibition, called The Bubble, invites us to reflect on the spaces we create within ourselves—the places we retreat to, where we imagine, and where we feel safe. These are the bubbles we build to protect ourselves from the outside world, a world that often feels different from the one we hold in our minds.
As you move through the works here, I hope you’ll think about your own bubble—how it protects you, but also how it separates you from reality. May this exhibition offer you a moment to ask questions, to explore, and perhaps even to understand the contrast between the inner world and the outer world.
My name is Hillel Zhenwirth. I was born in Tel Aviv, Israel, and I studied art with the late painter Leo Contini, as well as at the Emily Carr University in Vancouver, Canada. I’ve been a professional artist since 2001, and today I teach painting here at the Nina Center, focusing on adult students. My work is greatly influenced by German Expressionism, especially the works of Otto Dix and Egon Schiele, and I see myself as an expressive artist. I hope you enjoy The Bubble as much as I enjoyed creating it.
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