Dania Chelminsky

The Prickly pear cacti, Opuntia Ficus Indica, has a similar symbolism in the Mexican, Israeli and Palestinian cultures. It symbolizes immigration, settlement, rootedness, and locality. It is a plant of Mexican origin, an immigrant to Israel- like me. The plant constitutes a border between the villages. It also crosses borders between different countries. These borders are not only geographical but also cultural, economic, racial, and religious. Like immigrants, it adopts local characteristics while maintaining attributes of the original country, always carrying a conflict of identity.
I use these plants stems and veins which I slowly dry, keeping their natural shape, color, and texture. I oxidize the silver and rust the iron in order to get an organic appearance of the metals.

http://www.daniachelminsky.com