'There Once Was a Girl Named Hester, and Other Damaged Kids' exhibition opening

Through vivid colours and a strange sadness, the odyssey is told of a small doll lost in the real world. This is the subject of 'There Once was a Girl Named Hester and Other Damaged Kids', a collection of paintings by Nelson-based Dutch/Israeli artist Amitai Ben David, which opens at the Nelson Museum on Friday, August 19.

The images in 'Hester' were inspired by Ziva the Doll, a black and white Israeli children’s book from the 1960s. Through 'Hester', Ben David explores the upbringing of his Jewish Dutch mother, Hester Trompetter, who, as a young girl was orphaned, and lived through the traumatic experiences of war - experiences that are both unique to his family history but universal in regards to impact and inheritance.

'There Once was a Girl Named Hester and Other Damaged Kids' runs August 20 to November 5, 2022. For more information about the exhibitions and other events and programming at the museum, visit touchstonesnelson.ca