Tel Aviv is a study in contrasts. Walk the streets of the city and you see old buildings situated next to modern high-rises, well-to-do cafe-goers with a table-side view of street people, cutting edge start-ups staffed by hipsters clad in vintage apparel.
The contrast between sacred and profane is generally attributed to the holy city of Jerusalem but Tel Aviv, too, has its share of religious activity amidst its secular everyday life.
That dynamic is captured beautifully in a series of shots by photographer Evyatar Dayan whose Facebook page, Street Photography in Tel Aviv, affords a glimpse into the lives of Tel Avivians — secular, religious and otherwise inclined — as they go about their daily routine.
Sometimes, when least expected, you’ll find a Tel Avivian taking a break for morning prayers…
The Chabad Lubavitch hassidic movement has a presence…
Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is honored by secular Tel Avivians as the day when automobile traffic comes to a halt, and pedestrians and bicyclists take over the city streets…
And speaking of stopping traffic…
Many more images are on view at Dayan’s Facebook page, Street Photography in Tel Aviv, where he presents city life in all its grittiness with sympathy and gentle humor.