Poultry

“In March 1974 I began to work at a poultry plant as a ‘loader/unloader,’ as the job title went. Due to Planting of Trees and the scenography for the 11th Festival of Song [1972, a pretext for settling scores with ‘enemies of the people’ and a purge in culture], I was punished and had to undergo reeducation in a working-class environment. I worked at a poultry processing plant, hauling sacks. Every afternoon after work I sketched my impressions from the plant. Work at the plant was hard, but in some sense interesting, thanks to the people I met there. I drew at home, in secret. No one saw my work or knew that I was creating it.

Working at the plant gave me the opportunity to experience a reality unfamiliar to me, a reality filled with problems and very interesting developments. For me this experience served as a period of extended reflection, and maturity. It altered my creative practice, in relation to life but also art.” (Edi Hila)