Itay Zalait

Itay Zalait (Hebrew: איתי זלאיט; born: April 21, 1979) is a multifaceted Israeli artist and lecturer who deals mainly with painting and sculpting.

At age nine he exhibited his work at the youth wing at the Israel Museum as part of a competition held in collaboration with "Mishkafayim" art magazine.

Through his works, Zalait wishes to challenge the limits of the local conversation and shake the accepted norms in the hopes of awakening new and critical thought about the social and cultural questions of the day.

[3][4][5] On December 6, 2016, Zalait placed his work "King Bibi" at Rabin Square - a gold statue in the image of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which stood at 4.5 meters.

Zalait created a 300 kg bronze replica and plans to place it next to the original statues of dictators from around the world which have been gathered from the past 30 years.

[20][21] On November 8, 2018, Zalait exhibited "Be'Lev HaUma" (At the Heart of the Nation), a statue in the image of former Culture and Sports Minister, Miri Regev, standing opposite to a big white mirror.

In December 2020, Zalait placed the "Hero of Israel" statue at Paris Square in Jerusalem, the backdrop of ongoing protests against Benjamin Netanyahu.

The 6-ton bronze statue was inspired by the now-famous photo of Nimrod Gross holding a flag and being forcefully sprayed by a police water cannon.

" Hero of Israel " statue placed at Paris Square in Jerusalem as part of the protests against Benjamin Netanyahu
The "King Bibi" exhibit at Rabin Square , 6 December 2016
A multi-participant photo in Rabin Square next to the sculptor Hero of Israel, with the photographers standing in the position of the sculptor with a flag. In the front of the photo on the right is Itai Zlait and next to him on the left is Nimrod Gross, who was holding the Israeli flag in a photograph inspired by the sculpture.