Duke Hosting Residency for Jewish and Arab Artists

Six-week program aimed at developing understanding through creation and examination of art

Rubenstein Arts Center
A showcase of the artists' work will take place at the Rubenstein Arts Center Sept. 4 through Sept. 28.

Duke University will host five Israeli Jewish, Palestinian and Druze artists for a six-week residency aimed at developing understanding through the creation of artistic works from their unique and shared perspectives.

The artists, graduate students at Givat Haviva, The Center for a Shared Society in Israel, will engage with Duke students, create and exhibit art on and off campus, and visit arts venues and arts organizations throughout the Triangle region. 

The residency, which begins August 16, was organized by the Provost’s Initiative on the Middle East, an ongoing effort to make space in the Duke campus community for rigorous and respectful debate in which differing perspectives are welcome on current and past conflicts in the region, with support from the Office of the Vice Provost for the Arts and the Charles H. Revson Foundation. 

A showcase of the artists’ work will open September 4 and run through September 28 at the Rubenstein Arts Center.

“We are delighted to welcome these talented artists to Duke for this unique and important residency,” said Provost Alec D. Gallimore. “Art has always been a means for engaging and learning about one another and thus offers hope for moving past the conflicts that ravage our world. Our community looks forward to learning from this group, their works, and the diverse perspectives they represent.”

The artists recently completed their studies at the Givat Haviva Shared Art Center in which they lived and worked among a group that was half Jewish and half Arab. During their five-month program, they attended field trips and discussions together, were mentored by leading Israeli artists, and exhibited their work professionally. 

The Duke residency is meant to further enrich their experience at Givat Haviva as they continue to explore their artistic identities. Their activities will include visits to the North Carolina Museum of Art and Duke’s Nasher Museum of Art, the North Carolina School of the Arts in Winston-Salem, and the Durham School of the Arts. They will also meet with Duke Religious Life leaders and visit local faith communities.

Formed in 1949, Givat Haviva is the oldest institution in Israel promoting Arab-Jewish reconciliation. The organization emphasizes the importance of a Jewish and Arab shared society anchored in principles of mutual respect, trust, pluralism, and intrinsic equality between citizens, focusing its activity on the fields of culture, art, education, and language instruction. 

Duke’s Office of the Vice Provost for the Arts, known as Duke Arts, champions an expansive and inclusive approach to the arts on campus, throughout Durham, and beyond – showcasing world-class creators and performers, cultivating artists and scholars, supporting the creation of new works, and ensuring that the arts are a vibrant part of a Duke education.

The Charles H. Revson Foundation strives to expand knowledge, advance democratic values, and pursue the public good. Through grants and fellowships in Biomedical Research, Education, Jewish Life, and Urban Affairs, it invests in a vibrant civic society that can meet the material, social, and spiritual needs of diverse communities, primarily in New York City and Israel. 

For more information on the artists and their works, visit https://provost.duke.edu/givat-haviva-artist-residency/.