This fall, the Neubauer Collegium will present a suite of new works by Soviet-born Israeli artist Zoya Cherkassky. Teasingly titled The Global Political Crisis, the exhibition consists of erotic drawings in Cherkassky’s signature diaristic style and four large acrylic paintings with similarly charged content, as well as an erotic sculpture and a small collection of jokey pornographic tchotchkes. Touching on the vexed issue of free speech at a moment when political and cultural leaders seem to have very clear ideas about what art should say and do (or, just as patronizingly, what it shouldn’t say and do), Cherkassky’s humorous paean to the “joy of sex” offers a vision of everyday desire that stands in knowing, defiant contrast with the planetary polycrisis alluded to in the title. More than a mere escapist fantasy, Cherkassky’s foray into the age-old tradition of ars erotica symbolizes the importance of pleasure in our trying times – of joining the beleaguered forces of Eros against a surging spirit of Thanatos.
Please note: This exhibition includes sexually explicit material.
Gallery
Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis Gallery
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Installation view, Zoya Cherkassky: The Global Political Crisis, on view at the Neubauer Collegium Sept. 25, 2025 – Jan. 9, 2026. Photo by BOB (Robert Chase Heishman).
Exhibition Narrative
Carousel with 3 slides shown at a time. Use the Previous and Next buttons to navigate, or the slide dot buttons at the end to jump to slides.
