We often say we know a place if we recognize it by name. For example, the Dead Sea, also known as the Salt Sea, is known for its location, name, and hypersaline waters. Despite our recognition, there remains a distance. For artist Sigalit Landau, who grew up in Jerusalem, the Dead Sea has breathed life and character into her projects in literal and imaginative ways. There is still a mystique, but she has walked its shores since childhood, so one might say that her work is of the sea. One of Landau’s recent projects started out with a simple black gown. In 2014, she submerged the long-sleeved gown into the lake and documented its transformation over a period of three months. The dark fabric served as a magnetic backdrop for the wanting salt. The artist described the changes with delicate and romantic words, saying it was “like snow, like sugar, like death’s embrace.” The series, which we have included below, consists of 8 photographs total, and is available for viewing at London’s Marlborough Contemporary.
