Emi Sfard | Building No. 27, 2026

A simple, everyday activity is at the heart of this work: sitting on a street bench across from building no. 27 and observing what is happening around it over time. The mundane, familiar character of this typical stretch of Tel-Aviv street allows it to serve as a microcosmos of the urban landscape, and to unfold the story of Tel Aviv in recent years.
A series of digital drawings, some animated, follows the cumulative changes, big and small, in the place over time: neighborly gestures, political protests, public events, signs of war, business turnover, urban renewal processes, and the movement of residents coming and going. The building remains in place, but the meanings associated with it are constantly changing. The animated sequence offers a view of the city as a space where grand history is registered through everyday occurrences. The street becomes a living archive of an era, and the building becomes a central figure whose walls bear layers of memory, conflict, hope and loss. The personal dimension also emerges from this ongoing observation: changes in the urban landscape resonate with feelings of belonging, alienation and a longing for the very concept of home.