Levana Katz - swarm - issue 13

Levana Katz

6th year, Studio Arts

Swarm

collection of pieces ranging between 7.5″ x 20″ and 4″ x 12″

screenprint on paper, beeswax

2022

Description:

Swarm is part of an ongoing exploration of Hebrew calligraphy as a reference for my drawing practice. Hebrew calligraphy is an important part of my connection to both my Jewish heritage and my family, as it is a skill my mother passed on to me.

In these silkscreen prints, the fluid lines of the Hebrew letter “Lamed” (the first letter of my name) constitute the bodies of dragonflies, my mother’s favourite insect. In Jewish Mysticism, dragonflies represent transformation. While the Hebrew letters are reimagined as dragonflies, a symbol of continuity and change, they are encased in wax, a static material. The organic forms of the prints carry the tension between preservation and growth, as the final sculptures signal to a swarm of dragonflies in flight, insects encased in captivity, or a calligraphic signature.