A Short Bio:
Hili Slav is an Israeli American multidisciplinary artist, who recently graduated with a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). Hili was born in New York to Israeli parents and spent her formative years away from her extended family (who remained in Israel). This experience had a profound impact on Hili’s identity and its lasting impression is visible throughout her work. Longing became a defining feature throughout her life. It has fueled a rigorous and meaningful practice which today includes not only painting, but also sculpture, furniture, and video art. Hili’s primary influences are European and American paintings and decorative arts, which take the form of portraiture and figurative realism.
Artist Statement:
My painting practice is grounded in observation-- from life as well as from photos and videos. I am constantly in search of beauty, which appears primarily in maternal or domestic spaces—soft delicate moments where nurture takes center stage. Portraiture is the vessel through which I communicate; my work is grounded in relationships, from the growing pains of my own adolescence to old photos of family members I have never met-- I am drawn to the concrete and imaginary experiences of my subjects, often times drawing inspiration from my own memory to help flesh out the emotions supporting my work.
My furniture and sculpture practices are rooted in material exploration and are guided by notions of playfulness and whimsy. I derive inspiration from my own experiences growing up in various locations, and how those spaces (or the faint memory of those spaces) shape my identity. I’m drawn to the longing and nostalgia that I feel towards ‘home’ and other interiors and am curious by the role that design plays within those spaces. How can I embody those feelings of longing within my own designs? How can I recreate lived experiences and memories within a sculpture?
selected press:
selected shows:
Brown RISD Hillel, Providence, RI
Co-curated “Judaica,” featuring work of Brown and RISD students, sold 8 paintings, 2021, 2022, 2024
The Providence Art Club, Providence, RI
“College Scholarship Exhibition,” 2022, 2024
Brown-RISD Hillel, Providence, RI
ירח זורח (Radiant Moon) Solo Show, 2023
Brown-RISD Hillel, Providence, RI
Home, 2023 (Curator)
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
Major Survey Show, Gelman Gallery, 2023
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
New Contemporaries: Selected work from the class of 2023, Gelman Gallery, 2023
DISTRICT Arts, Frederick, MA.
Humor, 2023
Lore Degenstein Gallery, Susquehanna University, PA.
14th Annual Figurative Show, 2023
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
Senior Invitational, Woods-Gerry Gallery, 2023
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
Charcuterie! Senior Painting Group Show, Memorial Hall Gallery, 2023
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
Dreamhaus: Life in Plastic, Carr Haus, 2023
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
The 9th Annual Baker +Whitehill Student Artists’ Book contest, Fleet Library at RISD, 2023
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
RISD Senior Painting Show, Woods-Gerry Gallery, 2023
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
RISD Furniture Design Triennial Show, Woods-Gerry Gallery, 2022
Levinsky Garden Library, Tel Aviv, Israel
Donated 9 paintings that were sold at the annual Levinsky Benefit Art Sale 2021, 2022
Alpha 137 Gallery, New York, NY
Pets of the Pandemic: A Benefit Exhibition, 2020
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
RISD EFS Triennial Show, Woods-Gerry Gallery, 2020
The National Art Center, Tokyo, Japan
Represented Israel at the 20th International High-School Art Festival, 2019
Hamidrasha Gallery, Tel Aviv, Israel
Exhibition featuring Israel’s top youth artists, July 2019
Thelma Yellin High School of the Arts, Givatayim, Israel
Periodical exhibitions, including a self-curated final project, 2016 - 2019
The Art Students League of New York, New York, NY
Summer workshops exhibition, July 2014