Comic Artist Orit Ariff Explores Kibbutz Upbringing in New Anthology
Artist Orit Ariff's new comic in the "Bayit" anthology explores her upbringing in Kibbutz Ruhama, highlighting the conflict between individual aspirations and collective demands. Ariff recounts how the kibbutz's communal decision-making and lack of personal focus led her to leave and establish a private life. She contrasts this with her current experiences as a mother and as part of an artists' collective, which allows for greater individual autonomy. The comic reflects on her childhood, her decision to leave the kibbutz, and her ongoing artistic career.
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- Orit Ariff's comic in "Bayit" explores her childhood in Kibbutz Ruhama and its impact on her life.
- She felt the kibbutz system prioritized the collective over individual needs and desires.
- Ariff left the kibbutz to build a private life with her partner, Yinon.
- Her comic contrasts the impersonal kibbutz upbringing with personal maternal care.
- She now participates in an artists' collective that balances community with individual autonomy.
Artist and comic creator Orit Ariff, now 55, has contributed a personal comic to the new anthology "Bayit" (Home), published by "Yookah Books." The work delves into her experiences growing up in Kibbutz Ruhama in the Negev, a collective environment where individual desires often took a backseat to the group's needs.
Ariff recounts how, at age 50, she decided to pursue a master's degree at Bezalel, an art academy. When offered the option of group projects, she insisted on working alone, citing her extensive experience with communal living. "I want to work alone. I've worked enough in a group," she stated, emphasizing her desire for personal creative control as she reached a point of self-understanding.
Her comic in "Bayit" opens with a warm family scene, but a concert's music triggers a childhood memory: a kibbutz member requesting permission from a committee to study music, a request put to a vote. This sparked Ariff's realization that she could not live in a place where others dictated her future as an artist, fearing she would have to beg for "art days" or use her art for communal decoration.
This realization, coupled with friction and petty disputes within her Nahal (paramilitary-Zionist youth movement) group, led Ariff and her partner, Yinon, to leave the collective dream and establish a private home in Kiryat Tivon. She reflects that while she is now more accepting of communal decision-making processes, understanding that even private households have financial limitations, she still struggles with the kibbutz system's lack of focus on the individual.
Ariff describes her kibbutz upbringing as having a dichotomous message: be a "good girl" conforming to standards, or be "not okay." Despite outwardly appearing to conform, she felt a deep sense of not belonging. She contrasts this with her experience as a mother, where personal, comforting interactions with her own children were possible, unlike the impersonal care she received in the kibbutz's shared children's house.
Having completed art studies in 1998, Ariff worked as an illustrator before transitioning to comics. She found her voice in storytelling, encouraged by writer Shehem Smith. Today, she teaches illustration and is part of an artists' collective in Kiryat Tivon, finding a form of community that allows for individual autonomy, a stark contrast to her kibbutz past.
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