Lahav Shani conductor

The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and the Nassima Landau Art Foundation are joining hands in a one-of-a-kind project, bringing together visual arts and classical music to commemorate the events of October 7.  

 This unique collaboration is based on Modest Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition,” a tribute born of the loss of the composer’s friend, the painter Viktor Hartmann. In this iconic composition, Mussorgsky translated ten of Hartmann’s paintings into musical movements, breathing life into his friend’s artworks by letting the music describe the visuals on the one hand, and the emotions felt on the other. 

 Now, nine Israeli and international visual artists reverse the original process, allowing Mussorgsky’s music to guide the creation of paintings, photographs, and videos. Contextualizing their work in our current moment, the artists express their reflections and emotions following the events of October 7, a year later, grappling with the complexities of collective memory and trauma. Guided by IPO’s musical director, Lahav Shani, and NU’s co-founder, Steeve Nassima, each artist explored one of the composition’s movements. The resulting artworks highlight various emotional states experienced during and after the attack, ranging from sorrow, grief, and loss, to hope, optimism, and resilience. 

 These two forms of artistic expression come to life during the concerts, as the artworks are projected on a screen behind the orchestra. The works develop in harmony with the music, offering the audience a powerful, evolving narrative that deepens the emotional resonance of the pieces. Pushing the boundaries of traditional concert formats, this performance functions as a gesamtkunstwerk, a total work of art where the aural and visual blend into a multi-sensory experience.  

 Participating artists: Zio Ziegler, Ori Gersht, Michaela Mor, Lavi Lipshitz, Joel Mesler, Gideon Rubin, Tant (Broken Fingaz), Michal Rovner, Eshchar Hanoch Kliengbiel