ORNA NAOR | “We want to be FREE in our country”
Israel was established as a Jewish Democratic State. The elected government and representatives were supposed to serve the people. For the last decade, at least, Israel is becoming more Jewish, less democratic. No equal rights to minorities, to the LGBTQ community, to the non-Jewish population; more and more we learn about the corruption, abuse, and taking care of personal interest over national ones. Violent language makes everyone who doesn’t agree with them a Traitor, dividing us among ourselves, just to continue to rule, but we loss of dignity, loss of honesty, and decency.
Since 2017 I’m covering the different demonstrations concerning governmental corruption. Covid-19 revealed that the kings have no clothes; they do not obey their own orders during quarantine, take care of their own, frighten the people, and pass laws on maintaining a charged man, guilty in corruption, as a prime minister.
These pictures are from 2017 – 2020, showing the despair, the need, the anger, and the demand for a change. One of the protest signs says that “We want to be FREE in our country” as the words of our anthem.
Orna Naor
My name is Orna Naor, I’m a street and photojournalist photographer from Tel Aviv, Israel. I started taking pictures professionally around the end of 2013 and immediately was drawn to Street photography. I travel around the world, trying to learn and document other cultures, costumes, ceremonies, and ways of living; I do the same in my own country.
I’m always looking for the people, the reactions and interactions, the faces, and the stories behind them.
I’m also involved in documentary projects, like the Women of the Sea project, documenting Israeli-Palestinian co-operation, Jewish Streets, The Corruption protest, and others.
My work has been published in various Street books and magazines, including at the We photo, World Street Photography, MonoPix, Israeli Lens Magazine, Progressivezine, Shade of Grey, among others.
During the past 10 years, I have exhibited in many solo and group exhibitions worldwide, some of my recent exhibitions:
“My Cuba,” solo exhibition, Chicago 2016.
“Eye contact,” solo show, Israel 2018.
“Local Testimony” exhibition, Israel 2016, 2017, 2018.
“Women Street photography” exhibition, NYC, 2018. “Street sans frontier,” Paris 2018, 2019.
“Miami street Festival,” 2019.
“Two-way” street exhibition, San Francisco 2019.
“Streets of San Francisco,” 2019.
“All roads lead to Rome,” Rome 2019.
“Israel Photo Festival” 2019.
“The sea of Tel Aviv,” Eretz Israel Museum 2019.
“London Street Photography Festival” 2019.
