Literature

The elements of land, water, and oil portrayed in the series Trinity, similarly pregnant with meaning in religious doctrine and dogma, raise questions about the century-old material culture and evoke socio-cultural and political associations intrinsically linked to the local landscape. Indeed, once considered in relation to the local context, the relevance of the element in religious ritual conflates with charged nationalistic symbolism. The popular souvenir gift of holy water, holy oil, and holy soil—collected from the Jordan River, the Galilee, and Jerusalem, respectively—raise associations that are not solely religious in nature but also have contemporary political connotations such as attachment to land, expropriation, and the right of access to natural resources. Again, however, Halak’s Trinity series represents these elements as enclosed and contained. What is naturally flowing and unrestricted remains visible only through a transparent surface. The interlacing of personal and collective is highlighted by a simple detail: the symbols engraved on the marble where the bottles rest. On the one hand, the ichthys (the fish symbol), the eye of providence, and the triquetra symbolize the threefold nature of God and reference the title of the series, Holy Trinity. On the other hand, they evoke the notions of persecution and watchfulness.