Alexandra Zuckerman (b. 1981, Moscow) lives and works in Tel Aviv-Jaffa. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from Bezalel Academy of Art and Design (Jerusalem, 2006) and in Biology from Tel Aviv University (2010), a Master’s degree in education from Kibbutzim College (Tel Aviv, 2023) and studied at Städelschule as part of a student exchange program (Frankfurt am Main, 2007).

Rooted in the language of painting and drawing, Zuckerman’s practice is based on bodies of works that exist as independent cosmos. These series are often presented in their totality through solo exhibitions, in an attempt to fully articulate a unique language that is informed by previous instances in the field of visual art, and at the same time striving to position herself as an original thinker and maker.

Although her works always originate from the field of painting and especially drawing, they are often informed by other techniques and crafts, from weaving and knitting to ceramic, from animation to textile, from wallpaper to cutouts. Such transformation is always generated in accordance to core visual and conceptual issues connected to the series, whether is it Russian folklore – which mirrors her position as an immigrant – or children’s illustrations – hinting at the artist’s relationship to childhood (and motherhood) – also incorporating elements from the history of art – from medieval tapestry to Minimal Art.

Her works usually require long periods of time to be created and they are labor intensive and meditative at the same time. As a painter, she believes that her modus operandi cannot be only connected to thinking and knowledge; it must come from a deep understanding of the matter, driven by intuition, and open to so-called “happy accidents.”

Therefore, much of her time in the studio is devoted to research on how to apply ‘old’ techniques and materials in new ways and contexts. Unlike other languages, painting and drawing have the unique capability of retaining their historical quality without scarifying their connection to the present; in other words, such old and consummate languages still have the power to generate something contemporary and radical and to create works that will stand out within the ocean of images to which we are exposed on a daily basis.

Following these premises, she is always aiming at intertwining disparate categories in order to shift them. In doing so, she is looking at discipline at the borders with fine art, such as design, illustration and décor – all those areas that were labelled as inferior to art and very often relegated to a lower level of consideration and mostly practiced by women.

Zuckerman’s work has been the subject of solo exhibitions at Petach Tikva Museum of Art, Noga Gallery of Contemporary Art in Tel Aviv, kim? Contemporary Art Center in Riga, Galeria Sabot in Cluj-Napoca, Galerie Christian Nagel in Berlin and Israel Museum, Jerusalem (special display). Her work has been included in group exhibitions at Tel Aviv Museum of Art, and Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Museum Bar David in Kibbutz Bar-Am, Kayu in Bali, Galleri Riis in Stockholm, 427 in Riga, Magasin III in Stockholm and Kunstbuero Temporary Gallery in Vienna. Zuckerman has been awarded the America-Israel Cultural Foundation Scholarship and she was a resident of Iaspis – The Swedish Art Council.