Photography: Gil Eliyahu Benyamin, Haaretz | Local Testimony 2024
About Local Testimony
The Exhibition
Local Testimony, the annual exhibition of documentary and photojournalism photography, has been presented in Israel since 2003. The exhibition features selected photographs documenting the central events that have taken place in the country across the fields of news, society and community, religion and faith, culture and urbanism, nature and environment, and sports. Participating photographers include Israeli and Palestinian photographers, as well as foreign photographers residing in Israel.
Since 2009, the exhibition has been presented at MUZA – Eretz Israel Museum, Tel Aviv, and attracts tens of thousands of visitors each year, including guided groups of photography, art, and current-affairs enthusiasts, as well as organized groups of high school students from across the country.
Local Testimony is the only museum exhibition in Israel dedicated exclusively to documentary photography. The exhibition is accompanied by an impressive catalog featuring all the photographs on display.
Dana Wohlfeiler Lalkin is the founder and driving force behind Local Testimony. A year after introducing the international exhibition to Israel for the first time, she established Local Testimony. She continues to lead this unique and inspiring endeavor to this day, together with the exhibition’s professional team.
About the Competition
The Local Testimony exhibition is a meticulously curated product of a competition open to all professional photographers working in the region. However, the exhibition is careful to create an exposure platform for talented new creators alongside established and well-known creators.
As a focal point in the world of photography, Local Testimony attracts hundreds of photographers. Annually, over 10,000 photographs, submitted by more than 300 photographers, compete in the preliminary contest.
The photographs in the competition and exhibition are divided into eight categories, as well as into single photographs and series. Approximately 200 photographs and video works are featured in the annual exhibition, having undergone rigorous screening and in-depth discussion by the exhibition team. the October 7 war
Since October 7, 2023, Local Testimony has collaborated with The Union of Journalists in Israel, and the Photo of the Year category has been renamed the Roee Idan Photo of the Year Award, in memory of photojournalist Roee Idan, who was killed in the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023.
The Series of the Year Award is presented by Local Testimony.
Since 2020, Shomrim – The Center for Media and Democracy has granted special awards for outstanding works submitted to the Local Testimony competition.
Beginning in 2025, the Creation Award and the Democracy Award will be replaced by a dedicated grant supporting the creation of a new video work developed in cooperation with the Shomrim editorial team. The organization will assist with research, writing, and production, and the resulting work will be presented at the subsequent Local Testimony exhibition.
Our Partners
Photography: Abir Sultan, EPA | Local Testimony 2023
Local Testimony Team
Dana Wohlfeiler-Lalkin
Founder and Executive Curator
Ami Steinitz
Curator and Editorial Board Member
Vardi Kahana
Photographer, Curator, and Editorial Board Member
Sandy Teperson
Producer
Anat Kleiman
Artistic consultant and board member, Young Testimony curator
Noa Ehrmann
Graphic Designer
Arik Bernstein
Website and Archive Development
Events and Activities
As the exhibition team, it is important for us to be attentive to the fast-moving and current developments in the field of photography, both locally and globally. Therefore, the exhibition team is careful to hold discussion and brainstorming sessions on the changes taking place in the world of photography. During the exhibition period, the museum spaces adopt a celebratory atmosphere, and alongside Local Testimony, additional photography exhibitions are displayed, and panel discussions, lectures, and curator meetings are held.
Over the years, the exhibition team has hosted leading international photographers who have given lectures, workshops, and master classes, including Gilles Peress, Abbas (z"l), and Alex Webb—photographers from the prestigious Magnum photo agency—John Stanmeyer, a photographer for National Geographic, and more.
The exhibition team also holds commemorative events. The latest of these was an evening in memory of the recognized and respected photographer Micha Kirshner z"l, who was the curator of the Local Testimony 2016 exhibition.
Exhibition Curators Since Inception
Moshe Shai | Local Testimony 2003 |
Moshe Shai | Local Testimony 2004 |
Moshe Shai | Local Testimony 2005 |
Yossi Nachmias, Z"L | Local Testimony 2006 |
Ami Steinitz and Yossi Nachmias, Z"L, Co-Curator | Local Testimony 2007 |
Ami Steinitz | Local Testimony 2008 |
Dana Gilerman | Local Testimony 2009 |
Galia Gur Zeev | Local Testimony 2010 |
Galia Gur Zeev | Local Testimony 2011 |
Moran Shoub | Local Testimony 2012 |
Moran Shoub | Local Testimony 2013 |
Vardi Kahana | Local Testimony 2014 |
Vardi Kahana | Local Testimony 2015 |
Micha Kirshner, Z"L | Local Testimony 2016 |
Vardi Kahana | Local Testimony 2017 |
Ami Steinitz | Local Testimony 2018 |
Eldad Rafaeli | Local Testimony 2019 |
Eldad Rafaeli | Local Testimony 2020 |
Eldad Rafaeli | Local Testimony 2021 |
Leah Abir | Local Testimony 2022 |
Anat Saragusti | Local Testimony 2023 |
Anat Saragusti | Local Testimony 2024 |
Ilia Yefimovich | Local Testimony 2025 |
Social Collaborations
One of the cornerstones of Local Testimony’s values is deepening the exhibition’s social orientation. In this framework, the exhibition team maintains continuous collaboration and contact with various non-profit organizations, including "Latet," "Gesher LaNoar BeSikun" (Bridge for At-Risk Youth), and "ASSAF" (Aid Organization for Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Israel). Following the exhibition period, a special photo sale is held, with proceeds dedicated to supporting the organizations' activities and the participating photographers.
Another project that highlighted the social significance of Local Testimony and was conducted in collaboration with the Peres Center for Peace is Frames of Reality. Through this project, Palestinian and Israeli photographers and filmmakers met for a brainstorming workshop focused on the photographic narrative and providing a toolkit for its refinement. The workshop included 12 seminars with leading lecturers from various related fields, as well as master classes and portfolio reviews. The conclusion of the workshop saw the production of an exhibition and a book, showcasing the photographic projects created by the participants.
In collaboration with the Ministry of Education, the exhibition “Young Testimony” was launched in 2020. The exhibition presents works by graduates of high school photography programs from across the country.
Presented as an integral part of Local Testimony, it reflects the exhibition’s commitment to nurturing the next generation of photographers in Israel. The project is accompanied by extensive photography workshops for high school students, conducted in cooperation with the Education Department of MUZA – Eretz Israel Museum, Tel Aviv.
Additional Exhibitions
Since 2012 and every two years, the Local Testimony system, in collaboration with Muza, has held the Image of Nature exhibition. The exhibition showcases the finest local nature and environmental photography, alongside the international exhibition Wildlife Photographer of the Year. The exhibition is presented during the summer months and attracts a large audience of families and nature photography enthusiasts.
The Local Testimony team maintains collaborations with various governmental bodies and organizations, most notably:
* The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with which it initiated the exhibition Stories of Israel, presenting a mosaic of life and society in Israel. The exhibition was shown at selected venues worldwide.
* The Israel Nature and Parks Authority, with which it initiated the exhibition The Natural Side of Israel, presented at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, featuring Israeli nature photography.
* The Beit Shturman Museum, Ein Harod, where the exhibition Testimony of Protest was presented — a selection of photographs from the Local Testimony archive focusing on social and political protests.
* The New Israel Fund, in collaboration with which additional exhibitions drawn from the Local Testimony archive were presented in Toronto, Canada, at the Miles Nadal Jewish Community Centre (MNjcc).