A Sydney exhibition curated by the Shalom Collective is promoting solidarity and a shared love of Bondi in the wake of tragedy

Just steps away from the site of the Chanukah shooting that took place on Sunday 14 December, a new exhibition in the historic Bondi Pavilion seeks to reclaim the iconic beach – both for the Jewish community, which has deep roots in the area stretching back to the early 19th century, and more broadly for Australian society. Solidarity and a shared love of the rugged beauty of Bondi across generations and communities are ultimately what shine through in this difficult show, which has been curated by the Shalom Collective, a Sydney-based nonprofit.

*Nature Morte: Zikaron by Ella Dreyfus © Courtesy of the artist*

For days following the antisemitic attack, thousands of Australians poured onto Bondi Beach with flowers for the victims. It was both an outpouring of national grief and a public show of support for the Jewish community – support that has largely been absent since 7 October. By the time everything was cleared away 10 days later, there were three tons of flowers. These were taken to a warehouse to be dried for a future memorial. It was during the intermediate stages of drying that the artist and academic Ella Dreyfus came to photograph the blooms, eventually creating Nature Morte: Zikaron (Still Life: Remembrance). The taut elegance of Dreyfus’s 12 chiaroscuro photographs beautifully captures the melancholy of this moment of public solidarity.

On Friday 19 December, at sunrise on Bondi, a communal paddle-out to honour the 15 victims took place. Roughly 2,000 people showed up, far more than expected. Among the surfers were pregnant women, children and first responders. The ceremony also included chalk drawings on the promenade of a menorah and bees in honour of 10-year-old Matilda “Bee” Britvan, the youngest victim killed by the gunmen. Photographer Paul Blackmore captures the solemnity of the moment before the paddle-out in his exquisite photograph Light Over Darkness: Paddle Out. In the image, hundreds of people gather on the sand, their faces uniformly sombre, punctuated by surfboards and drenched in the fiery early morning summer light.

*The Height of a Small Table by D-Mo © Silversalt Photography*

Among the many heroes of the Chanukah tragedy who rushed forward to save lives is Texas-based Rabbi Leibel Lazaroff. While assisting his mentor, Rabbi Eli Schlanger, who was murdered, Lazaroff ran to the aid of critically wounded New South Wales police officer Scott Dyson, using his own shirt to staunch the bleeding. While doing so, he was shot twice. Lazaroff is as diminutive in stature as he is giant in courage and The Height of a Small Table by visual storyteller D-Mo affectionately portrays this duality. The restrained composition and traditional elegance of the rabbi’s attire are juxtaposed by the figure of him standing on the table, one hand in his pocket, projecting both vulnerability and defiance. Lazaroff’s black kippah melts into his dark hair, his tzitzit curl out behind his jacket and, on his outsized Texan belt buckle, is a menorah.

There is an inherent tension at the heart of trying to hold light. You can cup a flame, but trying to hold it will burn, and the light will be extinguished. This feels like an apt metaphor for the precariousness of this moment, as Australia’s national reckoning with murderous hatred and terror begins with hearings for the Royal Commission on Antisemitism and Social Cohesion. It remains to be seen if the country will summon the requisite honesty and tough-mindedness needed to reverse the disastrous course of unchecked antisemitism that has led us to this moment. Holding Light, which features evocative works by many more artists, is at least a positive step in the right direction.

By Nicole Waldner

Holding Light runs until Sunday 28 June at Bondi Pavilion Art Gallery, Sydney. bondipavilion.com.au