And when Pinchas, the son of Elazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation and took a spear in his hand, and he went after the man of Israel to the tent, and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel and the woman through her belly. And the plague that struck the children of Israel ended. (Numbers 25: 7-9)
Orit’s experiences in Israel during the Palestinian terror war that started in 2000 prompted her first politically tinged painting. Pinchas is a blistering critique of Jews who “sleep with the enemy,” with an allusion to the Oslo Accords, which only led to more Jewish bloodshed. While this political message is often associated with observant Jews, Orit purposefully used image an R-rated image of couple fornicating to appeal to a more secular mindset. The painting asks the basic question: at what point is the use of force a desired and moral option?
