Description
Book SynopsisOffers a new criticism of contemporary Jewish art, showing how Jewish artists bring their use of action and process to Jewish ideas. Bringing together exhibition catalogs, midrashic texts, and artist statements, this book addresses abstraction, conceptual art, performance art, and other styles that do not rely on imagery for meaning.
Trade Review“A meritorious work both for amalgamating past scholarship and for furthering the field as it relates to contemporary art. Much like the author, who is an expert in allowing viewers to see something new in a recognizable boundary, Image, Action, and Idea in Contemporary Jewish Art creates fresh space in a seemingly stationary setting.”
—Adam Reinherz Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle
“In this manifesto Schachter seamlessly joins this growing chorus as a practicing artist, theoretician and critic.”
—Richard McBee The Jewish Week
“In this lively, stimulating (though in places repetitious) book, Schachter (fine arts, Saint Vincent College) takes as his point of departure the judicious observation that the study of Jewish art has unavoidably been constrained by the second commandment, which forbids the making of graven images. Recommended.”
—W. Cahn Choice
“A highly original exploration of contemporary Jewish art practice and criticism at the convergence of theology and aesthetic theory. A welcome antidote to the preoccupation with the Second Commandment and Jewish aniconism.”
—Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett,author of Destination Culture: Tourism, Museums, and Heritage
“This is a lively book. Rather than scraping over familiar territory regarding the Second Commandment (prohibiting graven images), Ben Schachter sketches out promising new paths for contemporary Jewish art that also reconnect with long-standing Jewish traditions. It’s particularly welcome in the suddenly burgeoning field of Jewish art to hear from a scholar who is also an accomplished artist—and who studies his contemporaries with an eye for process as much as product.”
—Aaron Rosen,author of Art and Religion in the 21st Century
“A valuable contribution to the expanding discussion of Jewish art. ‘Action’ as the consummate motif in the making of contemporary Jewish art may not be a new idea, but Schachter’s articulation of it is new and the framing of it refreshing and, in many respects, original.”
—Ori Z. Soltes Ars Judaica
“Schachter’s book is a relational demonstration of how reframing can offer an alternative way to explore a topic that has, for so long, been left untouched or unchallenged.”
—Madison Tarleton Reading Religion
Table of ContentsContents
Illustrations
Acknowledgements
Introduction
Chapter 1 Images and Actions in Art Criticism and Jewish Thought
Chapter 2 Melakhot, Creative Activities, and Artistic Practice
Chapter 3 Contemporary Jewish Art
Chapter 4 Visual Midrash and Artistic Interpretation
Epilogue: Becoming a Jewish Artist
Bibliography
Index
