The Jewish Museum in New York City

New York City's Jewish Museum is one of the world’s finest institutions dedicated to exploring art, Jewish life, and Jewish culture, from ancient times to the present.  The Jewish Museum was founded in 1904 in the library of The Jewish Theological Seminary.  The Museum is housed in a historic mansion, located at 1109 5th Avenue at 92nd St. on the Upper East Side of New York City. 

The Museum has a fascinating permanent collection of nearly 30,000 works of fine art, Judaica, antiquities, and broadcast media which reflect over 5,000 years of Jewish history. The Jewish Museum also has a wide array of educational programming ranging from talks and lectures to performances and hands-on art making for families, students, educators, and art lovers.

My visit to the Jewish Museum and the exhibits I am blogging about was at the end of December 2016.  I encourage you to check out the Jewish Museum's website for current exhibitions.  TheJewishMuseum.org

Part of the Museum's focus is dedicated to the subject of the Jewish Journey, Jewish culture, and Jewish continuity.  The main exhibition is about the Jewish experience as it has evolved from ancient times to the present day.  The exhibit highlights the question of how Judaism has been able to thrive for thousands of years across the globe, even in challenging times, through Jewish texts and objects.
Jewish texts have been the central factor in the survival and evolution of Jewish continuity.  The objects on exhibit such as Torah scrolls, other religious scrolls, and Jewish ritual objects, all reflect the different ways Jews have expressed their sense of what it means to be Jewish throughout history, in various countries, cultures, and religious contexts. The Culture and Continuity exhibit is located on two floors of the museum.  There is so much to say about the exhibit, but most of what I will blog about will focus on the visual arts.  

After the destruction of the Second Temple, and beginning in the 3rd Century CE, synagogues were often decorated with beautiful mosaic floors and wall frescoes.  Jewish symbols included biblical figures, Hebrew writing, the menorah, and the shofar.  Below are some photos of one of these mosaic floors, including a detailed/close-up photo. These mosaics reminded me of my signature style of my personal artwork, creating the illusion of mosaic tile using acrylic paint for my paintings.

I was particularly interested in the paintings at the museum, many of which I will highlight in this blog article.  Max Weber, who lived from 1881 to 1961, is perhaps one of the most notable artists who portrayed Jewish life in his artwork.  Max Weber was born in Russia and emigrated to the the US.  Below on the left is a photo of Weber's famous oil on canvas painting, "The Talmudists," painted in New York in 1934.  In his early years, he was a great admirer of the artist, Paul Cezanne, and studied art in Paris from 1905-1908. Cezanne's influence can be seen in his earlier works, including the painting, "Still Life with Challah" exhibited at the Jewish Museum.   Most of his early works were still lifes and focused on Jewish ritual objects for Shabbat.  By 1919, Weber abandoned formal experimentation and turned to Jewish subjects in pursuit of the spiritual.  

​Marc Chagall was another famous Jewish artist who had work displayed at the Jewish Museum.  Chagall had a lifelong fascination with the Bible and much of his artwork expresses his passion for using his artistic expression to convey the imagery of the Bible. ​A lithograph on paper, "Moses Displays the Ten Commandments" from "The Story of the Exodus", 1966, is shown to the right.  

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Works from Piet Mondrian, Fernand Leger, and other well-known artists adorned the walls of the Jewish Museum.

Shown below, this 1986 large acrylic on canvas painting by David Reeb, an Israeli artist, titled "Map of Israel" is one of a series of paintings that incorporated the pre-1967 Israeli border, known as the "Green Line."  Reeb was one of the most outspoken Israeli artists of his generation and was preoccupied with the political implications of the map of Israel.  The ongoing conflict between Israel and her neighbors and the conflict around national borders is the major theme in his series of paintings.   In this painting, Reeb portrays the outline of the realistic map as the main motif on an abstract patterned surface. In the photos below, I've included 3 photos showing some of the incredible detail of this fascinating painting.

​The Bezalel School of Arts and Crafts was established in Jerusalem in 1906 by Boris Schatz, a Lithuanian-born artist and passionate Zionist.  The school was named for the biblical artisan, Bezalel, and sought to create a genuine "Hebrew Style" and to provide Jews living in Palestine with income through the production and sale of crafts that expressed a national identity.

Also on exhibit were a series of paintings from John Singer Sargent from the late 1800s, that highlighted the lifestyle of privileged Jewish family in late Victorian England.  John Singer Sargent was well known for his daring portraits, with unexpected poses, fancy textures and bold color palette.  Shown here is Sargent's group portrait of "Mrs. Carl Meyer and Her Children" painted in 1896.  

​This untitled oil on canvas painting by Eva Hesse was painted between 1963 and 1964.  Hesse was born in Hamburg, Germany and fled Nazi Germany with her Orthodox Jewish family at the age of two.  Although her mother committed suicide  when Eva was a little girl, her artwork is filled with humor and playfulness.  Hesse pushed the boundaries of Abstract Expressionism and Minimalism, pioneering a blended approach, often called Eccentric Abstraction.  

Another fascinating exhibit called "You Don't Have to Be Jewish" featured a compilation of television commercials and clips from the museum's National Jewish Archive of Broadcasting, paired with print advertising campaigns, works of art, and more.  The exhibit explores material produced for Jewish audiences or with Jewish content and the way religion, ethnicity, and identity play out on American television. The exhibition closed in early February.

Also on exhibit from November 4, 2016 to March 26, 2017 was "Pierre Chareau: Modern Architecture and Design." Pierre Chareau was a celebrated French furniture designer, architect, and art collector.  The exhibit showcases rare furniture, lighting fixtures, and interiors, and even featured virtual reality glasses to immerse the viewer in the architectural renderings.

This Chanukah Menorah was created by artist, Peter Shire.  "Menorah #7" was created in 1986 with anodized aluminum, painted steel, and chromium. He was part of the Memphis design group that created unusual art objects in the form of home decorations, furniture, textiles, and lighting in the 1980s.  Shire chooses everyday objects we are already familiar with, precisely because that familiarity allows a freedom to re-imagine materials, shape and surface. And while these basic elements are unusual, the primary function and meaning of the object remains intact.  This work of art was part of an exhibition that closed in early February.

One of the most fascinating exhibits that I've seen this past year was "Take Me (I'm Yours)." The exhibit is based on a 1995 exhibit at the Serpentine Gallery in London, curated by Hans Ulrich Obrist and the artist Christian Boltanski.

​In a conventional museum experience, it is the visitor that consumes art by looking at the paintings, sculptures, or photographs on exhibit.  Typically, one is not allowed to touch the art, and certainly not allowed to take them home!  Take Me (I'm Yours) defies this well-established standard by featuring works by more than 40 artists from different generations and from all over the globe:  The goal of the exhibit is to encourage you to not only touch the artwork, but also to take them away with you and keep them for yourself.  Some of the things I walked away with were a can of lemon-flavored sparking water, photographs of glamorous women from the 1950s, stencils, temporary tattoos, pins, hard candies, pill capsules, fabric patches, and more!

The exhibition ended in February.  I've posted a few photos below.  Photos of visitor experiences can be found online using the hashtag: #TakeMeImYoursNYC.  

I love this work of art by Alex Israel, "Self-Portrait (Mom)", 2016. On view November 4, 2016 - April 23, 2017.

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During my visit, I saw a drop-in art workshop underway, where families were creating works of art together inspired by exhibitions currently on view at the Museum.  On Sundays, families can participate in studio art sessions, experience a simulated archaeological dig, or experience the museum's exhibitions with a printed Kids Gallery Guide.  The Museum hosts family concerts, workshops and vacation week programming, and workshops for kids with disabilities.  For more information, visit:  TheJewishMuseum.org/Families.