Omer Halperin will be a guest as an artist-in-residence at Quartier am Hafen until the end of 2025.

The figures in Omer Halperin’s works arise from an ongoing interest in the human psyche, as it is shown in the abundance of contradictions that a person carries within them. She is fascinated by the totality of human experience and, in particular, by the struggle to regulate emotions and instincts in contact with the outside world. The figures she draws do not express themselves through sound or language. Instead, they express themselves through emotions that she locates in their eyes. While the figures keep their secrets firmly to themselves, they also reveal a desire to reveal something.

Her works are created using charcoal and soft pastels on paper and show human figures, interiors and indexical objects. Since there is no external image or reference underlying the works, the painting process becomes an act of contemplation rather than observation. Each drawing requires lingering; she observes, searches and registers over several months. This process eventually culminates in a circular movement: while her inner observations take shape through external gestures, the figures themselves seem to be performing an act of contemplation – to the point where they seem to return the gaze.

Omer Halperin lives and works in Tel Aviv. She received her BFA and MFA from the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem and has participated in a variety of solo and group exhibitions both nationally and internationally.

The residency is supported by Quartier am Hafen and the Kunststiftung NRW.