Niv Gafni


Sound
Architect/Ecologist
Tower Of Silence

Inspired by ancient 'sky burials' a practice rooted in beliefs like Zoroastrianism, which forbade burying the dead in the earth as it desecrated sacred ground.
This work explores this concept. He captures the 'spirit of death' found in contemporary sky burials by recording the sounds of Vultures arriving at the feeding station to feast on the remains of a carcass.
This sonic layer blends the scavenging birds calls with the surrounding wildlife.

Within the Petach Tikva Museum installation, amid a circle of stones reminiscent of ancient Negev nomadic traditions,
Gafni meticulously crafts three-dimensional rib cages modulated as a Tumbleweed shape. These structures house the remnants of the consumed bodies and occasionally generate subtle movements, preserving the spirit and the living air within, even though they lack tangible remains.

2022