Curators: Dvora Liss and David Sperber

The exhibition New York, New Work presented, for the first time in Israel, some of the current major and canonical artists of contemporary Jewish art in the United States. The exhibition presented new works by members of the JAS (Jewish Art Salon), one of the most important, and certainly the largest group of artists who draw their inspiration from Judaism.

These artists appropriated Jewish traditions on their own terms. Their contributions to the development of contemporary American Judaism are considerable. Although the artists working within this framework do not reject aspects of secular Jewish culture, they undoubtedly place religious values at the center of the discussion on Jewish culture.

Israeli culture has no defined or well-developed field of Jewish art; Judaism – as a living and unique religious tradition – is usually excluded from the central discourse of Israeli art. Viewing the “there” from within the prism of the “here”, through an art exhibition that draws its inspiration from Jewish tradition, sources and culture - can challenge the conventional dichotomy in Israel that separates art from religion, and Jewish art from Israeli art. Unraveling these dichotomies and subverting the resulting hierarchies can inspire the local art scene that alienates itself from tradition. 

Participating Artists

David Wander \ Yona Verwer \ Tobi Kahn \ Eli Valley \ Cynthia Beth Rubin \ Archie Rand \ Helene Aylon \ Richard McBee \ Siona Benjamin \ Robert Kirschbaum \ Joel Silverstein \ Rachel Kanter \ Ahron Weiner