by Mark Deming
synopsis
The meaning and importance of national symbols is pondered in this short subject from artist and filmmaker Yael Bartana. A man in a rowboat makes his way to Andromeda's Rock, a famous landmark in the Jaffa harbor off the coast of Tel Aviv. The man climbs upon the rock, where an Israeli flag has been planted; he pulls down the flag, and replaces it with an olive tree. A Declaration was screened in competition at the 2007 Rotterdam International Film Festival.
