Conversation with Ayala Serfaty

I met Ayala five years ago when she had a solo show at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, an installation called SOMA. I remember being moved by the illuminated objects that looked like layers of white clouds, as light as drifting feathers, floating above ground. It suggested an underwater world of ultimate mystery and beauty. This type of museum installation was like a fantasy; it absorbed me for hours and I wanted to visit over and over again. It was an unforgettable experience. I remember thinking of the Zen Gardens of Kyoto that allow the visitor to meditate and inhale the spiritual entity of nature. I was delighted to find out that the Zen Gardens of Kyoto are one of Ayala's major sources of inspiration.

Later, I was introduced to Serfaty's illuminated sculptures, which she skillfully crafts in various shapes, colors, and sizes. Her innovative method utilizes glass rods manipulated into a fragile and complex skeleton, which is then covered with a thin skin of white polymere. These objects have not only gained admirers, but have also transformed homes across the globe into dazzling spaces. Through these peaceful lights, she creates harmony and balance through objects that are quiet, yet expressive and provocative, naturalistic yet surreal; these forms are feminine, sensual, and pure. Ayala's spirit clearly shines through of her light sculptures.

Last year, she introduced a new series of furniture called Rapa, another manifestation to her unique vision. She crafts each piece from handmade felt, that most ancient of textiles. Layer after layer of magnificent silk, linen, and wool fibers in astonishing colors are crafted into substantial forms, seamless on frames of sofas, chairs, and daybeds. The furniture has a primeval quality with textures reminiscent of rust, moss, aged wood, and minerals, expressing an acceptance of natural cycles of growth and decay, after the Japanese manner of wabi-sabi. After years of exploring tribal art and digging into the world of textiles, Ayala has achieved the expression of her personal genius.