Jewish Diversity in Art - Panel Discussion June 27

Jewish Diversity in Art - Panel Discussion
Monday June 27, 7-9 PM
Free & open to the public

JCC Manhattan
334 Amsterdam Ave, New York NY 10023
646.505.4444

The Jewish Art Salon is pleased to welcome Matthew Baigell, professor emeritus of art history at Rutgers, author and editor of over 20 books on American and Russian art; visual artist Siona Benjamin and filmmaker/ Be’chol Lashon Director of Outreach Lacey Schwartz for an evening discussion on art that represents the multi-dimensional identities of the Jewish people and on Benjamin's exhibit at the JCC. The panel will be moderated by Yona Verwer, president of the Jewish Art Salon, and take place in The Laurie M. Tisch Gallery.

Matthew Baigell, is emeritus professor of art  history at Rutgers University where he specialized in American art and, more recently in Jewish American art.
He has written four books and co-edited two anthologies on Jewish American art and is currently working on a study of Jewish political artists during the Depression in the 1930s. He has also written on contemporary figures who, he believes, are creating a golden age of Jewish American art today.
Website: http://arthistory.rutgers.edu/faculty/bios/baigell/

Siona Benjamin is a painter originally from Bombay, now living in the US.  Her work reflects her background of being brought up Jewish in a predominantly Hindu and Muslim India. In her paintings she combines the imagery of her past with the role she plays in America today, making a mosaic inspired by both Indian miniature paintings and Sephardic icons.
Her work has been featured in: The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, The Jewish Week in NYC and NJ, The Boston Globe, Art in America, Art New England, Art and Antiques and Moment magazine.
Artist website: www.artsiona.com
Gallery website: www.flomenhaftgallery.com

Lacey Schwartz is currently producing/directing “Outside the Box,” a documentary which traces Lacey’s upbringing in a white Jewish family, discovery at eighteen that her biological father is Black and personal exploration of her mixed-race identity.
She is the Director of Outreach North America of Be'chol Lashon (In Every Tongue) an organization that grows and strengthens the Jewish people through ethnic, cultural, and racial inclusiveness.
Documentary website: http://www.goldglassproductions.com/
Organization website: http://bechollashon.org/

Dutch-born Yona Verwer’s recent paintings and photos, "Temple Talismans" and “City Charms”, feature imagery based on the war on terror and tikkun olam. Her latest work incorporates Dutch iconography. She has been featured in the NY Times, the New Yorker, the Daily News and Zeek.
She is the co-founder and president of the Jewish Art Salon in NYC, where she organizes art events. Currently she is an artist-in-resident at the Dershowitz Center where she will co-curate “Terror: American & Israeli Artists Respond”.
Artist website: http://yonaverwer.com
Organization website: http://jewishartsalon.com