Intermountain Jewish news., 1925-11-19
Mandirsps Of Jewish Art

Handbags 0f Jewish Art
These fates have conspired to drive
the Jews from one country to another
and from one corner Of the earth to
another, from one language to another.
The Jew Is n confirmed wnnderer
He is without a country. Wherever
he goes he is stranger in n strange
land, and there is no universally Of
welcome for him anywhere. More
often than otherwise he is received
with antagonism. This tragic cast in
Jewish history has favored new concep-
tions Of liberty and justice.
Nothing indeed has been favorable
looking toward the formation of such
a thing as n Jewish art school.
| The centuries after the destruction
Of the Jewish country, the wanderings
of the Jewish people, to which refer
encc has already hren made. combined
with certain prohibitions against the
creation of works OF art, which oh
tnined. strongly initiated against the
development Of art among the Jews.
Only In the last and present centuries
have the Jews begun to play an I'M
portant role in the world OF art, but
this evolution has been tinctured with
an overshadowing art that is distinctly
not Jewish.
The drama NJ ''The Merchant Of
Venice" cannot properly he called jew
ish literature. 1t is rather n drama
based upon a Jewish subject.
Gentilss with Jewish Mstifs
A receni writer has well set forth
that Orzcheshko, Polish authoress
pictured Jewish life from its most sym
pathetic side but her composition was,
after all, merely on the surface. She
found herself incapable of painting a
Jewish soul. 1t was a task far too
deep and incomprchensible fer an out
slider. Even her descriptions are
WRONG In one place she speaks Of Fri
Talith and Tefllin--on. Friday night
The famous Russian painter Aiva-
zowsky painted Jews mt "Tashlich." at
the river Of Rosh Hashanab, with a
Talitf and Tefillin and Torah.
The great Michael Angelo created
Moses MS an Italian patrician.
Sargent painted the prophets as full
blooded Anglo-S Saxons, most of them
carefully shaved. scme he permitted to
hnye beard From the artistic point Of
view, they were extremely fine; but the
| spirit was very far from being Jewish.
Gustavc Dore illustrated the Bible
He is II great artist in execution and n
poet. and well deserves the reputation
he secured. But Jew would never
think of painting God with knife in
his hand as he cut the rib of Adam to
create the iranscendent Eve.
| TissOt in Palestine
| James Tissot lived and worked in
Palestine for some fifteen years. His
| types are passable. The costumes are
true. He has secured the atmosphere
cf the Holy Land and he has invested
his concept of the Bible with consum-
| ing interest. But the whole is an eX-
preston of Christian conception with
the coldness of Professionalism.
i The T'issot paintings in the Brookyn
Museum. while a drawing card which
still continue 10 attract well deserved
| attention. nevertheless bear out the
foregoing statement If examined with
cut prejudice.
We may perhaps claim to have a
Jewish art The question obtrudes it.
self: have we individual Jewish forms
and ''colors"?
There Is something. without doubt
but in the last analysis it still remains
very poor.
| Jewish Art in New York
Notwithstanding this somewhat pes
simisiic view. ii Is irne that in New
York City and TO n greater or lesser
extent elsewhere. Jewish artists figure
prominently.
n The exhibitions Of the Society of In
dependent Artists, The Salons of Amer
icn, the New Gallery. The Whiine,
studio club. the kraushnaar Art Gal
lery. Reinlardi's, Scott q Fowes, An
dersum'- and Daniels, the j. B Nau
mann's Print Rooms, the Societ,
II Anonymc and other similar galleries
and institutions have shown the WORK
rf Jewish artists in connection wit
their Gentle competitors and the com
purson has been highly favorable Il
the Jewish exhibitors. Indeed. for va
riety aud for comprehensivcncss, tht
Jewish artists in their contributions
buvr furnished an almost complete in