In spring 2013, area K-12 students will participate in the Seventh Annual Purim Mask Invitational, with the opportunity to have their creations displayed for several weeks within the museum.  On Purim, it is a mitzvah (commandment) to hear the Megillat Esther (The Book of Esther) that tells the story of Purim read aloud. Due to Esther’s disguising her identity as a Jewess, it has become custom to dress up and mask one’s identity during the Purim feast. Students create wearable masks recognizing Purim, a joyful holiday occurring on February 24, 2013 (Jewish Year 5773). The majority of students in Tulsa area schools are from faiths other than Judaism and are often unaware of Jewish culture and traditions. In creating a mask for Purim and learning the story of Esther and other Purim traditions, students are able to learn more about other cultures and religions. The show is on display in the Education, Brodsky and Special Exhibition Galleries from February 24 – April 7, 2013.

The masks are juried by a panel of local art experts in separate age divisions with all masks competing for the “Best in Show” award.

Click here to view the entire Seventh Annual Purim Mask Invitational exhibit virtually.

For this premier event, members of the Green Country Watercolor Society interpreted the Jewish philosophy, Tikkun Olam (Repairing the World) in water color paintings. The exhibit was a juried members’ show, and all works exhibited were available for purchase with a portion of the proceeds benefiting The Sherwin Miller Museum of Jewish Art.   This show was on display in our Mezzanine Gallery November 14 – December 26, 2012.

David Halpern is a photographer living in Santa Fe, New Mexico and Tulsa, Oklahoma. Since 1973, his photographs have been exhibited annually in museums and galleries across America, and he has been the recipient of numerous awards. An avid traveler, he has photographed a variety of subjects throughout the United States, and in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, China, South America, England, Italy, Africa and Greece. Until recently, his most recognizable images were his large format black and white prints of the American Landscape. However, since 1997, virtually all his photographs have been made with digital cameras, and he has published a large volume of images in color.

During this special exhibition, David will highlight “A Few of My Favorites and the Stories Behind Them”  in our Mezzanine Gallery from September 9 – October 29, 2012.

“In America the biggest is the best.” -Roy Lichtenstein

Roy Lichtenstein spent his career in a relationship with American popular culture. As a beginning artist, he turned his interest in the legends of the American West into painting of western subjects in modern art styles. His signature comic strip style paintings were first introduced to the art world in 1960. Lichtenstein’s technique, using large dots to simulate mass market printing in very large scale formats, led to a lifelong exploration of themes in American pop culture: romance, war, science fiction, patriotism, and consumerism.

This exhibit of twenty iconic Lichtenstein prints, some up to 7 feet wide, includes examples from his comic book themes, patriotic works, war themes, consumer themes, and includes a rarely viewed series of six Lichtenstein American Indian theme lithographs.  Roy Lichtenstein “American Identity” will be on display until January 13, 2013.

Textiles are the most varied of ‘manufactured’ goods. Lending themselves to body covering, shelter, food storage, transportation of goods, and group/clan identification, they were—and remain to this day—objects of high status, decoration, creativity, and spiritual identity. A Stitch in Jewish Time: Provocative Textiles explores how a variety of exceptional contemporary artists apply their skillful creativity to the ever-evolving understanding of Jewish values. The individual textiles address issues of memory and reflection, interpretations of history and ritual, and links between the past and present. They delve into aspects of the Holocaust, war, patriotism, celebration, prayer, feminism, and sexuality, frequently through the inclusion of Biblical texts and sometimes challenging traditional forms. In the realm of conceptual fine art, the approximately two dozen outstanding textiles in this show leave an indelible impression that expands our perception of contemporary art, and enhance our understanding of Jewish history, experience and values. This exhibit will be on display in the Brodsky and Second Floor Exhibition galleries from June 3 to August 26, 2012

Jews of the Luthertown Wittenberg in the Third Reich began the 2012 Exhibition Series in the Mezzanine Gallery and ran from January 15-February 23, 2012. Wittenberg was the city where Martin Luther wrote the papers leading to the protestant reformation; the same papers which were used by the Nazis to fuel anti-Semitism and to discredit and persecute Jews. This exhibit was originally conceived as a response to the negative heritage of Martin Luther’s teachings in regard to the Jewish people that became so identified with Nazi theology that the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America publicly rejected his “violent invective and…its tragic effects.” This historical exhibition consists of multiple panels of graphics and text, including examples of documentation from the era and photographs of the Jewish community, that document the lives of the approximately 70 Jews living in Wittenberg during the Third Reich’s occupation.

Russian-born painter Marc Chagall (1887-1985) established a reputation as one of the most eminent among 20th century modern artists. His work was dominated by rich sources of imagery- memories of his family life, folklore of his early years in Russia, and the Bible. The Drawings for the Bible were commissioned in 1930 by Ambroise Vollard, a Parisian art dealer and publisher of deluxe art books. Chagall traveled to Palestine to experience for himself the people, the landscape and the sacred historic places. By 1939, at the outbreak of World War II, he had finished 66 images. Although Chagall was familiar with the works of the old masters, especially Rembrandt’s portrayals of Biblical themes, his depictions are independent of all previous iconography and the traditional conventions. Rather, Chagall based his etchings on his personal memories and his impressions from his trip to what was then Palestine. The museum will display a large selection of lithographs from this series from October 23, 2011 – January 31, 2012.

Andy Warhol’s Ten Portraits of Jews of the Twentieth Century depicts renowned luminaries of Jewish culture: Sarah Bernhardt, Louis Brandeis, Martin Buber, Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud, George Gershwin, Franz Kafka, the Marx Brothers, Golda Meir, and Gertrude Stein. Warhol referred to this pantheon of great thinkers, politicians, performers, and writers as his “Jewish geniuses.” Warhol’s iconic portraits attest to the lasting achievements and fame of these singular figures. Originally published as a portfolio of silkscreen prints on paper, Warhol was so pleased with the commercial success of his Ten Portraits that he decided to create additional versions of the series as silkscreen paintings on canvas. Andy Warhol was one of the most important artists in the Pop art movement in America and became as famous as many of the celebrities he portrayed in his popular silkscreen prints.  This amazing series was on display from October 23, 2011 – December 30, 2011.

From its inception, the Jewish National Fund (JNF) was charged with the task of fundraising in Jewish communities for the purpose of purchasing land in Eretz Yisrael to create a homeland for the Jewish people. JNF’s signature Blue Boxes, which were used to collect the necessary funds, are now known worldwide as a symbol of Zionism. JNF’s work is evident in every facet of life in Israel, from beautiful forests to vital reservoirs to the innovative farming techniques being used on kibbutzim throughout the nation. This exhibit traced the development of the Jewish state in the art of the JNF during the 1950s and 60s-an art meant to document the progress of the JNF’s project as well as aid fundraising efforts worldwide.

What is the Jewish National Fund?

It is the dream fulfilled of a group of people who were delegates to the Fifth Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland in 1901. Previous congresses debated over purchasing land for Jewish settlement in Ottoman Empire-controlled Palestine, but no practical steps had been taken. Theodor Herzl, a Viennese journalist, was determined to take action to establish a national fund. He gave a speech at the Fifth Congress that inspired the delegates, who passed a motion that created the Jewish National Fund (Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael) (JNF-KKL). The Fund was “the property of the Jewish people as a whole.” The JNF’s first undertaking was to collect £200,000 to be used to build the foundations of a Jewish state.  Headquarters were moved to Jerusalem, and the task of raising awareness and funds for land purchases began.

The JNF created the Golden Book, which records special moments in the lives of inscribers with paid inscriptions, which to this day remain an honored tradition throughout the Jewish world. This item was not greatly successful, and Yona Krementzky, head of the JNF,  adopted the “Blue Box” idea. The idea came from a small-town bank clerk, Haim Kleinman, who suggested that a collection box be placed in every Jewish home so that contributions could be made to JNF at every opportunity.

Over the next 50 years, the Jewish National Fund would purchase land throughout Palestine, land that would one day become the State of Israel. Jews from around the world collected spare change in tin “Blue Boxes”  so that one day a return to the Homeland would be possible.  The “Blue Box” itself came to be seen as a symbol of Zionism, and it was distributed in Jewish communities everywhere.

How was the dream of the JNF realized?

The JNF made its first purchases from 1903-1905, and spent its first decade involved in land purchases, establishing the first modern Jewish city, Tel Aviv, acquiring land for the first collective community (known today as kibbutzim), and pioneering education programs for European immigrants.

In 1927, the JNF’s purchases totaled 50,000 acres of land on which 50 communities stood, which increased to 89,500 acres and 108 communities by 1935.  Planting began for Balfour Forest near Kibbutz Ginegar, and for Mishmar HaEmek Forest.

Throughout the three years between the end of World War II and the proclamation of the Jewish State, the JNF continued its remarkable activities: afforestation, land reclamation, and assistance to communities.

On May 14, 1948, with the withdrawal of the British forces ending the League of Nations-United Nations Mandate, the decision was made to proclaim Israel’s independence. The Jewish population of the State of Israel numbered 650,000, in 305 towns. Two hundred and thirty-three of these towns stood on JNF land.

After statehood, the JNF continued to build and enlarge communities and plant new forests, were which eventually opened as parks for public use. Water conservation and irrigation projects became an important focus during the 1980s, along with building infrastructure for growing tourism.

Since its founding in 1901, the JNF has been committed to building for Israel’s future as well as responding in times of crisis and need. A vital part of Zionist history, the JNF achieved its goal of purchasing the land that would become the State of Israel, then helped to develop that land into a thriving nation.

Kaddish is commonly known as a mourner’s prayer, but in fact, variations on the Kaddish prayer are routinely recited at many other times, and the prayer itself has nothing to do with death or mourning. The prayer begins “May His great Name grow exalted and sanctified in the world that He created as He willed. May He give reign to His kingship in your lifetimes and in your days …” and continues in much that vein. After a great loss like a death, one might expect a person to lose faith in G-d or to cry out against G-d’s injustice. Instead, Judaism requires a mourner to stand up every day, publicly and reaffirm faith in G-d despite this loss. To do so insures to the merit of the deceased due to the public expression of such faith in the face of personal loss. While the recently bereaved recite Kaddish for a specific relative, all Jews recite Kaddish for all who went before.

From this tradition, Argentinain born artist Mauricio Lasansky hones echo into statement, the Jew into all man. Lasansky’s Kaddish Series, a series of eight intaglio prints, was completed in 1978 as his answer of peace and survival in relation to the Jews lost in the holocaust. The series, which took three years to produce, is the result of a lifetime of intaglio experimentation. Seemingly straightforward, the Kaddish prints are technically complex. While shape, size and subject matter are unifying elements, the prints offer a continuing variation in technique and color. Etching, engraving, soft-ground, aquatint and other techniques are combined in the multi-plate prints, which have as many as 40 separate pieces in a single image, meticulously fitted together like a puzzle. Each technique lends its unique voice to the complexity of the whole, creating a range from aquatint’s velvety black, atmospheric qualities of space, to the delicate and fragile drypoint line.