START THE tour
Nicole Phungrasamee Fein, Sabbath Basket, 2017.
Paper, 5 x 11 in. diameter.
Courtesy of the artist and Hosfelt Gallery, San Francisco. Photo by JKA Photography.
Our Sages of blessed memory teach: The Holy One said to Moses, "I have a precious gift in my geniza—my treasury-—and its name is Shabbat. I wish to give it to Israel; go and tell them." Like anything kept in a treasure box, the exquisiteness of the Jewish Sabbath is sometimes obscured and not easily accessible to most of us without the proper key. As the artists featured in this exhibit have brilliantly captured the full breadth of the Sabbath experience, from the abstract and cosmic, to the most practical and concrete, we hope that this self-guided walking text tour will pair ancient and modern Jewish wisdom, drawing out the big ideas and sources of inspiration from these works.
Nicole Phungrasamee Fein, Sabbath Basket, 2017.
Paper, 5 x 11 in. diameter.
Courtesy of the artist and Hosfelt Gallery, San Francisco. Photo by JKA Photography.
To the biblical mind, however, labor is the means toward an end, and the Sabbath as a day of rest, as a day of abstaining from toil, is not for the purpose of recovering one’s lost strength and becoming fit for the forthcoming labor. The Sabbath is a day for the sake of life. Man is not a beast of burden, and the Sabbath is not for the purpose of enhancing the efficiency of his work. “Last in creation, first in intention,” the Sabbath is “the end of the creation of heaven and earth:” The Sabbath is not for the sake of the weekdays; the weekdays for the sake of Sabbath. It is not an interlude but the climax of living. (Heschel, Abraham Joshua. The Sabbath. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1951, page 14.)
Terry Berlier, Challah, 2017.
Basswood, 3 x 7 1/2 x 18 in. (8 x 19 x 46 cm)
Courtesy of the artist. Photo by JKA Photography.
Rabbi Abba said: On Shabbat one should break bread over two loaves. What is the reason? “And it came to pass that on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omer-measures for each person; and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses.” (Exodus 16:22)
Torreya Cummings, Idle Hands, or, The Lost Glove Is Happy, 2017.
Leather and fabric work gloves, mason's and upholstery thread, cement, and wood, 18 1/2 x 11 x 10 in. (47 x 28 x 25 cm)
Courtesy of the artist. Photo by JKA Photography.
It is the Sabbath, not the culture of oranges or potatoes, that preserved our people during its wanderings. Now that we have returned to the land of our forefathers, shall it be discarded like some worn out thing?” …The Jewish people will never give up the Sabbath, which is not only the keystone of Israel’s existence but of human existence. Without the Sabbath, there would be no godliness and no semblance of humanity in the world. (Avineri, Shmuel. “Spending Shabbat with Bialik.” Haaretz. haaretz.com/jewish/books/spending-shabbat-with-bialik-1.63996
Nicki Green, Sabbath Crock, 2017.
Glazed stoneware, 11 1/2 x 9 x 9 in. (29 x 23 x 23 cm)
Courtesy of the artist and [2nd floor projects], San Francisco. Photo by JKA Photography.
It is a positive commandment to sanctify Shabbat with words, upon its entry and also its departure - that there be in them cognizance of the greatness of the day and its stature and its positive distinction from the other days before it and after it; as it is stated (Exodus 20:8), “Remember the Shabbat day, to sanctify it,” meaning to say, remember it with a memory of [its] holiness and greatness. And in explanation, our Sages told us that we are commanded to say these things upon wine. The purpose of this commandment is that we be aroused through this act to remember the greatness of the day and that we fix upon our hearts faith in the creation of the world, and therefore, we are obligated to do an act with wine—since the nature of humankind is to be greatly aroused by it (Berakhot 35b), as it satiates and causes joy.
Beth Grossman, On the Seventh Day, 2006.
Vintage electric pole insulators and glass paint, 14 x 3 in. diameter each.
Courtesy of the artist. Photos by JKA Photography.
Rava said: “It is obvious to me [that if one must choose to dedicate limited resources between] the [Shabbat] house light and the Hanukkah light, the former is preferable, on account [of the importance] of shalom bayit (peace in the home); [between] the house light and [wine for] sanctifying the day, the house light is preferable, on account of shalom bayit.” The thirteenth century gloss of Rashi explains: anywhere there is no light, there is no peace, because people stumble around and trip in the dark!
Al Farrow, Sabbath Candelabra, 2017.
Guns, bullets, and steel Candelabra: 13 x 9 x 9 in. Bullet case: 7 x 10 7/8 x 3/4 in.
Courtesy of Catharine Clark Gallery, San Francisco. Photos by JKA Photography.
…the Sages said that a man may neither go out on Shabbat with a sword, nor with a bow, nor with a shield, nor with a spear. And if he unwittingly went out with one of these weapons to the public domain he is liable…they are nothing other than reprehensible and in the future they will be eliminated, as it is written: “And they shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nation will not raise sword against nation, neither will they learn war anymore” (Isaiah 2:4).
Cathy McClure, Same Time, 2017.
Sterling silver, copper, paper, wood, wax, Jim Croce vinyl record, record player, and strobe light, 12 1/2 x 15 1/2 x 11 in.
Courtesy of the artist. Photo by JKA Photography.
This, then, is the answer to the problem of civilization: not to flee from the realm of space; to work with things of space but to be in love with eternity. Things are our tools; eternity, the Sabbath, is our mate. Israel is engaged to eternity. Even if they dedicate six days of the week to worldly pursuits, their soul is claimed by the seventh day. (Heschel, Abraham Joshua. The Sabbath. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1951, page 48.)
Allan Wexler, Sabbath Cell Phone Silencer, 2017.
Wood, luggage hardware, fiberglass insulation, foam rubber, corrugated cardboard, and cell phone, 17 1/2 x 30 x 15 1/4 in.
Courtesy of the artist and Ronald Feldman Gallery, New York City. Photos by JKA Photography.
Scene: A bowling tournament has been scheduled on a Saturday. Walter, the Jewish team member, is furious.
Donny: How come you don’t roll on Saturday, Walter?
Walter: I’m Shomer Shabbas.
Donny: What’s that?
Walter: Saturday, Donny, is Shabbas, the Jewish day of rest. That means that I don’t work, I don’t drive a car, I don’t fucking ride in a car, I don’t handle money, I don’t turn on the oven, and I sure as shit don’t fucking roll!
Donny: Sheesh.
Walter: Shomer fucking Shabbas!
Rabbi Zac Kamenetz wants to know: What good can I do in this world? What have folks before me tried? Most often, he looks to ancient Jewish sources of wisdom for inspiration to these questions, but he also gets some help from Leonard Cohen, Mark Rothko, and his wife Jen, and little girl. Kamenetz received rabbinic ordination in Jerusalem and has degrees from the University of Maryland and the Graduate Theological Union, and is a qualified instructor of MBSR from the University of Massachusetts Center for Mindfulness. He is the director of Jewish Living and Learning at the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco.
The Contemporary Jewish Museum and the San Francisco Jewish Community Center are pleased to share a season of collaborative programming in honor of the exhibition Sabbath. Highlights include:
Sabbath: The 2017 Dorothy Saxe Invitational is organized by The Contemporary Jewish Museum, San Francisco. An endowed sponsorship for this exhibition was created by George Saxe, z”l, in honor of Dorothy R. Saxe. Major support has been provided by Phyllis Cook and Wendy Kesser. Supporting Sponsorship is provided by Robert and Judy Aptekar.
The Contemporary Jewish Museum thanks The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts for its lead sponsorship of The Museum’s exhibition program.