האור שבפנים

Once I sat on the steps by a gate at David's Tower,

I placed my two heavy baskets at my side.

A group of tourists was standing around their guide and I became their target marker. "You see that man with the baskets? Just right of his head there's an arch

from the Roman period. Just right of his head."

"But he's moving, he's moving!"

I said to myself: redemption will come only if their guide tells them,

"You see that arch from the Roman period? It's not important: but next to it,

left and down a bit, there sits a man who's bought fruit and vegetables for his family."

(from Tourists, by Yehuda Amichai)

Light Within

Photographs by David Tesinsky
Curated by Ram Ozeri

Jerusalem is often seen through the prism of history, faith, and conflict. Invited by the Jerusalem Biennale to spend time in the city, Czech photographer David Tesinsky chose instead to focus on its people. Wandering through its streets and neighborhoods, he sought the moments that reveal the city from within: a glance, a gesture, a conversation, an embrace, a prayer, a moment of tension, or an unexpected act of kindness.

Tesinsky's photographs do not attempt to explain Jerusalem. They invite us to encounter it through the humanity of those who live it every day. David’s camera captures both warmth and struggle, reminding us that beneath the city's many divisions lies a shared human experience.

Presented as part of the 2026 Jerusalem Biennale, De Profundis (Out of the Depths), Light Within reflects the Biennale's search for what lies beneath the surface. Even in a city marked by complexity and contradiction, one can and should discover an inner light. Not in monuments or landscapes, but in people. It is this quiet soft light, found in moments of intimacy and vulnerability, that gives Jerusalem its enduring spirit.

The exhibition was made possible thanks to the sponsorship of the Czech Centre Tel Aviv.