Dwek gallery: opening reception, January 7, 2022 curator: Raz Samira press release. A Painter Facing the Land, a new exhibition by artist Ilan Baruch, is a collection of landscape, still life, and portraits. Baruch’s works speak a classic figurative language alongside a contemporary one, and the artist challenges contextual boundaries even in his use of local light and scenery. These seemingly ordinary, commonplace scenes and vistas appear to be decidedly Israeli, yet despite the fact that they were created through observation, an ancient mythological touch is evident in them. Baruch draws inspiration from the views in the area around him. They include the natural scenery of Jerusalem and the wild fields of Judea and Samaria, near his hometown of Modi’in.