Course, Hebrew University Rothberg School for Overseas Students
Jerusalem, Fall 1998-Spring 1999
Ruth Jacoby, Deputy Director of the Center for Jewish Art, gave two courses to foreign and immigrant students: The Archaeology of Jerusalem and Synagogues Throughout the Ages.
World Bank-UNESCO Conference
Washington, D.C., September 28-29, 1998
Center Director, Dr. Aliza Cohen-Mushlin, participated in a conference entitled Understanding Culture in Sustainable Development, which dealt with the place of cultural heritage in the rapidly changing world. ( See article).
Jewish Art in Israel: The Ingathering of the Nations
Jerusalem, Symposium, October 19-26, 1998
This symposium consisted of eight intensive days of lectures on Jewish art in Israel and tours to synagogues, museums and ancient sites around the country. The program provided participants with an overview of the mosaic of Israeli society, from the old communities in Safed to the newly established Ethiopian community in Beer Sheva. ( See article)
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Participants of the Ingathering of the Nations Symposium in front of the Cochin synagogue of the Indian community at Moshav Nevatim |
Council of Europe Meeting
Paris, November 3-4, 1998
Dr. Aliza Cohen-Mushlin led a Jewish delegation to a meeting in Paris of the Council of Europe whose various religious denominations and communities focused on Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property. ( See article).
Visit by Chinese Delegation
Jerusalem, November 5, 1998
A
Chinese delegation led by the Deputy Minister of Culture, Pan Zhenshou (on right), visited
the Center’s Index of Jewish Art. Center researchers presented an introduction to
Jewish art and an explanation of the Index's methodology, which were received with great
enthusiasm. The Israeli Ministries of Foreign Affairs, and Education and Culture jointly
organized the visit.
Mordechai Narkiss Prize Ceremony
Jerusalem, December 1998
The recipient of the 1998 Mordechai Narkiss Prize for Outstanding Research in Jewish Art was Sarit Shalev-Eyni, a doctoral student in the Art History Department specializing in Hebrew Illuminated Manuscripts. Sarit spent a year documenting Ashkenazi illuminated manuscripts in the British Isles for the Center for Jewish Art. Her in-depth and insightful lecture was on the Tripartite Mahzor.
Israel Museum Lecture Series
Jerusalem, December 1998
The Center’s annual winter lecture series at the museum included presentations by Einat Ron, graduate student researcher in the Ritual Objects Section of the Index on Jewish Art. Her lecture on the Jewish art of Bulgaria, summarized the work she carried out during last year’s documentation expedition. Ruth Jacoby, Deputy Director of the Center, spoke on the synagogues of Safed, drawing on the traditions of the different communities of Safed and examining their local and external influences. Ariella Amar, Head of the Ritual Objects Section of the Index of Jewish Art, delved into the customs and practices of the Ethiopian Jewish community. Tracing its history, she examined the absorption of Ethiopians into Israeli society and the effect of aliyah on their traditions.
1999 Lectures and Meetings in the United States
While Professor Narkiss was on sabbatical in the United States, he was invited to attend meetings and lecture in leading museums and various chapters of the American Friends of the Hebrew University throughout the country.
March 1999
Prof. Narkiss was the guest speaker at a day-long educational seminar on Jewish Identity of Art at the Ziff Jewish Museum in Miami. Rita Bogen and Gabriela Landau chaired the successful program.
During this visit to Florida, a reception and presentation by Professor Narkiss on The Golden Haggadah was hosted by Lillian and Bryant Shiller in Palm Beach. Narkiss also spoke to the Hillcrest/ Hollywood Chapter of the American Friends of the Hebrew University.
Rescuing the Jewish Artistic Heritage: Recent Documentation Expeditions of the Center for Jewish Art was the subject of Professor Narkiss’ lecture at the Cummer Museum in Jacksonville, Florida. Prof. Narkiss was hosted by Cindy Edelman, who also gave a luncheon in his honor.
March 1999
Prof. Narkiss participated in Princeton University’s meeting, Icon, Image and Text in Modern Jewish Culture.
May 1999
Nira Abramowitz chaired a lecture by Prof. Narkiss at the Temple Israel Center in White Plains, New York. Narkiss spoke on Italian synagogues.
June, 1999
Prof. Narkiss was invited by the Chicago chapter of the American Friends of the Hebrew University to speak at receptions in the homes of Michael and Judith Goodman and Ophira Ben Arieh. He also spoke to the Future Leadership Board at the Inside Art Gallery and Congregation Sinai.
September 1999
A meeting was held at Princeton University on Iconography and Methodology from the Jerusalem Index of Jewish Art and the Index of Christian Art, Princeton. The Hebrew University was represented by Prof. Bezalel Narkiss, Dr. Aliza Cohen-Mushlin and doctoral students Ariella Amar and Andreina Contessa. This marked the beginning of regular meetings to discuss iconography to be held by researchers of the two indices.
European Council of Jewish Communities
Paris, January 1999
Dr. Aliza Cohen-Mushlin and Boris Khaimovich from the Center for Jewish Art, participated in the meeting on Jewish Heritage in Europe at which members of the Jewish communities discussed where efforts should be focused in Europe in the next ten years. ( See article).
Meeting of the Friends of the Center for Jewish Art
Paris, January 1999
Sandra and Robert Gogel, veteran friends of the Center, hosted a parlor meeting at which Dr. Aliza Cohen-Mushlin spoke on the topic, From Eastern Europe to North Africa: In Search of Jewish Art and Architecture.
International Conference on Jewish Heritage
Paris, January 26-28, 1999
Dr. Aliza Cohen-Mushlin and Center researcher Boris Khaimovich presented lectures at this international forum on the preservation of Jewish culture in Europe. Cohen-Mushlin spoke about the “Rescue Operation of Synagogues and Ritual Objects,” and Khaimovich discussed “Jewish Monuments in Romania.” ( See article).
Council of Europe
Avila, March 1999
Dr. Aliza Cohen-Mushlin made a presentation at the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly’s Sub-Committee on Cultural Heritage on “Conservation of Major Religious Buildings,” that convened in Avila and Segovia, Spain. (See article).
Seminar on the “Other” in Art
Jerusalem, March 1999
The Society for Jewish Art’s annual Passover seminar focused on how different cultures view the foreigner amongst them and how these attitudes are depicted through their art. Also examined was the image of the Jew in Christian and Muslim Art.
Conference on Jews and Muslims in Tunisia
Paris, March 22-25, 1999
Center researcher Ariella Amar participated in a conference in Paris on Jewish-Muslim Relations in Tunisia from the Middle Ages until the Present. The Conference was co-sponsored by The Historical Society of Jews in Tunisia in Paris and a historical research group from the Tunisian University in Tunis. Amar presented a lecture on Jewish Art in Tunisia.
Prize from Minister of Absorption
Jerusalem, Spring 1999
Center for Jewish Art architect Boris Lekar, who is also a renowned artist, was presented with a prize by the Minister of Absorption to immigrants who paint their new homeland. Lekar's work was concurrently part of an exhibition of 100 years of Israeli watercolor at the Israel Museum.
Israel Prize
Jerusalem, Independence Day, April 21, þ1999
Professor Bezalel Narkiss was awarded the prestigious Israel Prize for his life’s work in the field of Jewish Art. ( See article).
Architectural Symposium
Washington, D.C., May 3-7
The World Bank, together with the Center for Jewish Art and other international institutions, co-sponsored a four-day seminar: “Preserving the Architecture of Historic Cities and Sacred Places,” attended by scholars and architects from all over the world. ( See article).
Workshop on the Index for Board of Governors
Jerusalem, June 6, 1999
Participants in the Board of Governor’s Meeting learned about the iconography of Noah’s Ark and the Flood in Jewish art at a workshop held at the Index of Jewish Art.
Sixth International Seminar on Jewish Art
Jerusalem, June 8-13, 1999
The Center for Jewish Art held its Sixth International Seminar entitled, Scripture and Picture: the Bible in Jewish, Christian and Islamic Art. International experts presented 140 lectures on an assortment of subjects dealing with biblical iconography. Five hundred scholars, students, educators, curators and enthusiasts of art history attended the Seminar. ( See article).
Teaching Jewish Tradition and Values through Art
Jerusalem, July 5-26, 1999
A special course for Russian-speaking educators from the CIS and Israel was held at the Hebrew University, Mt. Scopus, on the subject, Teaching Jewish Tradition and Values Through Jewish Art. The three-week course was given in cooperation with the Jewish University in St. Petersburg and is part of the Center’s ongoing endeavors in education. ( See article).
Israel Museum Lecture Series
Jerusalem, December 1999
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| Naomi Feuchtwanger-Sarig, recipient of the 1999 Mordechai Narkiss Prize, togather with Prof. Narkiss and Dr. Cohen-Mushlin |
This year’s lecture series opened with a stirring lecture by Center researcher Ivan Ceresnjes on remnants of the architectural heritage of the former Yugoslavia. The second week of the series was the annual Hanukah presentation of the Mordechai Narkiss Prize, awarded this year to Naomi Feuchtwanger-Sarig, lecturer in Jewish art at Bar Ilan University. Naomi presented a lecture on wimples from Denmark. Michal Sternthal, head of the Illuminated Manuscript Section of the Index of Jewish Art, delivered the third lecture in the series on Hebrew Illuminated Manuscripts in the Austrian National Library in Vienna. Center director, Dr. Aliza Cohen-Mushlin, presented the closing lecture on synagogues of Germany. The Center for Jewish Art’s annual lecture series at the Israel Museum was sponsored this year by Sotheby’s Israel.
Council of Europe Meeting
Strasbourg, January 2000
The Center participated in the second official meeting of the Council of Europe’s Cultural Heritage Department in which illicit trafficking in cultural property was discussed. ( See article)
Architectural Seminar
Jerusalem, March 12-20, 2000
A seminar was held on documentation of the Jewish built heritage together with the Center’s partners in Germany from Braunschweig University, including Professor Harmen Thies, and doctoral candidates Ulrich Knufinke, Katrin Kessler and Simon Paulus. Researchers shared their methodology, which will be used to enhance their skills in documenting architecture in the Index of Jewish Art.
Cathedral Workshop Project
Warsaw, April 6-9, 2000
The workshop "The Craftsmanship of Precious Metals: Value and Significance of Liturgical Furnishings" was organized in Warsaw by the Vatican's Pontifical Commission for Cultural Heritage of the Church, and by the Cultural Heritage Department of the Council of Europe. One session was devoted to the conservation, inventory and cataloguing techniques and procedures, in which representatives from Poland, Holland, Ireland, Corsica, Spain and Estonia demonstrated the way they document ritual objects and churches. Dr. Aliza Cohen-Mushlin demonstrated the methodology of the Index of Jewish Art.
IN MEMORIAM
Ursula Schubert 1925-1999
Professor Dr. Ursula Schubert, a woman of great personality, a breadth of knowledge, an open mind, and a sense of humor, was admired by students and scholars alike during the many years she taught at the Vienna “Institut für Judaistik.” Originally trained in ancient Near East studies, she began to pursue a second career in 1950 in the History of Art at Vienna University. After completing her studies, her first field of interest was the art of the early Christian world and its Jewish roots. She contributed numerous publications to the scholarly debate on this topic and was primarily interested in the wall paintings found in the catacombs at the Via Latina in Rome, and the early Christian mosaics in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. In 1988, she was granted an honorary Doctorate for her scholarly achievements by the theological faculty at Fribourg University (Switzerland).
Dr. Schubert taught early Christian art, ancient synagogues and Hebrew illuminated manuscripts at Vienna's Institute for Jewish Studies for many years, and lectured at numerous institutions all over Europe and in Israel. She was responsible for organizing and coordinating the art history component of many exhibitions held on the history of European Jewry at Austrian museums. The 1978 show “Judentum im Mittelalter,” in Halbturn, Burgenland and “1000 Jahre Österreichisches Judentum,” in the early 80’s in the Österreichisches Jüdisches Museum in Eisenstadt are just two highlights of her achievements as a curator.
Together with her husband, Professor Dr. Kurt Schubert, Ursula established an impressive collection of photographs of Hebrew illuminated manuscripts. This collection became an important tool for further publications by her and her husband and by many visiting scholars, and served as the basis for numerous joint projects born out of what the Schuberts would call their “co-productions" in Jewish art history.
During these last years, Ursula Schubert faced her illness with the same bravery and energetic spirit with which she approached her work and her life. She will be a continual source of inspiration for friends, family and colleagues. She leaves behind her husband, Kurt Schubert, two daughters Eva and Ruth, and three grandchildren, Franziska, Eva and Johannes.
Katrin Kogman-Appel
Department of Art History
Ben Gurion University of the Negev, November 1999
The Kurt and Ursula Schubert Collection
The “Kurt and Ursula Schubert Collection” recently reached its new home in Israel at the Center for Jewish Art on Mount Scopus. The idea for a photo archive of Jewish Art evolved in the late seventies out of Professors Kurt and Ursula Schuberts’ joint research projects on Jewish iconography in early Christian art and Hebrew manuscript painting. By virtue of a grant by the Österreichischer Fond zur Förderung der Wissenschaften,” the idea materialized in the 1980s. From that moment on, the rooms in the Vienna Ferstelgasse, were the second home of the “Institut für Judaistik.” The collection became the bedrock of research projects, publications and exhibitions and it was an open house for scholars and students. After almost twenty years of fruitful scholarship, the Schuberts decided to grant the collection to the Center for Jewish Art. It was the Schuberts’ hope that in Jerusalem the collection would be accessible to scholars from all over the world and that the archive’s original purpose would be realized. The collection will be opened once the Center moves from its temporary cramped abode to its new home.
