The connection between Judaism and the ceramic arts can be traced back to antiquity. So it’s fitting that the Jewish Museum Milwaukee will be hosting an exhibit of such works.
This will take place March 16-30 and will feature contemporary work by several talented artists in the field.
Moreover, the exhibit is being held in connection with the 48th annual conference of the National Council on Education in the Ceramic Arts, titled “Material World” and taking place in Milwaukee during the third week of March.
An artist and NCECA Conference reception will be held Thursday, March 20, 5-9 p.m., at the museum, 1360 N. Prospect Ave. For more information visit JewishMuseumMilwaukee.org.
In anticipation of the thousands of ceramic educators, artists and enthusiasts from around the world who will be coming to town, several area venues were selected to host exhibits to showcase the diversity of this continually evolving discipline.
Established and emerging ceramic artists submitted conceptual proposals which were matched with local venues. Pairings were made based on connections between artwork and organization, rooted in thematic exploration.
The JMM will be exhibiting two series of ceramic works: “Boomtown” by Washington-based artist Dane Youngren; and “Food: A Sustainable Table,” consisting of work by a group of Midwest artists organized by Anna Metcalfe and Kip O’Krongly.
On the surface Youngren’s sculptural constructions address the industrialization of our world landscape and our tendency to build to suit our needs, sometimes in harmony, but more often in discord with the environment.
On a deeper level, the dwellings look at our collective fascination with older structures and ruins while pondering the idea that places and spaces have a memory.
The series about food further addresses the environment and the need to preserve and conserve natural resources — particularly the nutrients needed to power our bodies.
That series includes functional pottery reflecting on the interwoven nature of our lifestyle choices with the broader world around us, sculptures exploring symbolism and iconography associated with plants and animals and installations focusing on alternative energy and organic sources of sustenance. Ecological consciousness is at the core of this series.
As the artists stated, “Seedling to landfill, the industry of food is an incredibly complex web — one that continually impacts our environment and our lives.”
Judaism intersects with environmentalism on many levels. Examples of this date back to biblical times.
They include humane policies of kashrut, holidays such as Tu B’Shevat (the New Year of the Trees), which exalts nature, and deep concern for the well-being of the natural world and its inhabitants, which is a basis for the Judaic tenant of tikkun olam (repair of the world).
Today, organizations such as the Coalition for the Environment and Jewish Life undertake educational and policy advocacy on issues like biodiversity and global warming. Others like Hazon operate Jewish environmental programs in North America and Israel, with a focus on sustainable food and transportation alternatives.
This timely exhibition challenges us to examine our role and responsibility in remembering the past and sustaining and protecting the future.
Molly Dubin is curator of the Jewish Museum Milwaukee, a program of the Milwaukee Jewish Federation.
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