February 14, 2000
Campus and community events celebrate Jewish culture
By Barbara McKenna
Several exciting events are planned in celebration of the third annual Jewish Culture
Week, which takes place through February 27. Among the upcoming events are a lecture
and exhibition on the Holocaust by an internationally acclaimed artist, a theater
performance, films, and special shabbat services.
Jewish Culture week is a collaborative celebration, sponsored by Santa Cruz Hillel,
UCSC's Neufeld-Levin Endowed Chair in Holocaust Studies, and the Helen and Sanford
Diller Family Endowment in Jewish Studies, Metro Santa Cruz, and many other campus
and community organizations.
Below is the schedule of events. For more information, call (831) 426-3332, email
info@santacruzhillel.org, or visit the Hillel
Web site.
Kitty Klaidman The Past Purged: Hidden Memories of the Holocaust
UCSC Porter College Hall Gallery
Through February 27
Exhibition Hours: Monday through Friday: 10 a.m.-1 p.m. and 4 p.m.-7 p.m.
Kitty Klaidman has been exhibiting her work since the mid-1960s in New York, London,
Paris, Los Angeles, Washington, and other cities in Europe and the U.S. She currently
has work in a traveling exhibition called "Witness and Legacy," which is
touring museums throughout the country. Much of her work has been concerned with
depicting physical fragments that prod us to remember the best and the worst of our
history and culture. The UCSC exhibit draws on Klaidman's own history as a child
in wartime Czechoslovakia, when she and her family were forced to hide in a dark,
confined space for a year, but from which they emerged alive thanks to courageous
Slovak farmers who hid them at the risk of their own lives. A later group of paintings
in this exhibition commemorates the American dead at Normandy.
"Love": Jewish student art show
UCSC Porter College Bridge Gallery
Through February 27
Exhibition Hours: Monday through Friday: 10 a.m.-1 p.m. and 4 p.m.-7 p.m.
Santa Cruz Hillel presents it first collaborative Jewish student art exhibition.
Ten UCSC students have come together to present their artistic interpretations on
the theme of Love. Artwork ranges from installation and performance to traditional mediums
such as printmaking, painting, and photography. The interpretations on the theme of
love vary from personal relationships to the love of creating art itself. The students
come from a variety of academic disciplines and years of study with two things in
common: their connection to Judaism and their love for art. Opening reception on
Thursday, February 17, 5:30 p.m. - 8 p.m..
"The Golden Bird"
Presented by A Traveling Jewish Theater
Wednesday, February 16th, 7:30 p.m., UCSC Barn Theater
Tickets Available at the UCSC Ticket Office, ext. 9-2159
$10 general/$5 students and seniors
"The Golden Bird," an original work created by the 1999 ATJT Apprentice
Program, is inspired by a tale from the legendary mystic Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav.
The Golden Bird combines old world wisdom, a contemporary search for meaning and
identity, and a dash of Alice in Wonderland surrealism on a journey of self-discovery.
The myth upon which the Golden Bird is based features the legendary Chasidic Master,
Rebbe Nachman of Bratslav (1772-1810). Rebbe Nachman reportedly took long walks in
the woods of Bratslav in an effort to draw closer to God. In the fable he hears the
majestic song of a bird which captivates him and draws him deeper into the forest.
Nachman believed that the bird's song was so sweet it had the power to bring peace
to the entire world.
In "The Golden Bird," Julia Nachman Burwitz, the daughter of a wealthy
timber industrialist, gets lost in the woods of Humboldt County. She glimpses a beautiful
golden bird flying over the forest and is transported on a quest to find it and the
peace it promises. The journey of discovery leads her to faraway places and encounters
with magical characters. Ultimately, Julia realizes that the bird's message is about
everyone's responsibility to make the world a more peaceful place--and for Julia,
this means taking responsibility for the environment.
"Contemporary Jewish Art: 1960-Present"
Nancy Berman, Director and Curator of the Skirball Museum in Los Angeles
Tuesday, February 22, 7 p.m., Baskin Arts Seminar Room
In 1969, Berman was named assistant curator of the Judaica Department of the Jewish
Museum in New York, a position she held until 1972. While at the Jewish Museum she
participated in the excavation of the sixth-century Beth Sh'ean Synagogue in Israel,
acting as liaison between the archeologists and student volunteers. When the Hebrew
Union College relocated its collection of artwork, Judaica, and antiquities to the
Los Angeles campus in 1972, Berman accepted the position of curator of the new Hebrew
Union College Skirball Museum. In 1977 she was named director for the museum. Since
1989 she has been a member of the steering committee of the Arts Consortium, a seven-member
group representing multicultural arts organizations in Los Angeles.
Fifth Annual Santa Cruz Alternative Jewish Film Festival
Nickelodeon Theater, Capitola Theater, UCSC
February 23, 24, 26, 27
The Fifth Annual Santa Cruz Alternative Jewish Film Festival explores different aspects
of Jewish culture through short and feature films, director talks, and panel discussions.
For details on screenings, contact Hillel at (831) 426-3332 or see a listing
of events.
Traditional Egalitarian Shabbat Services and Dinner
GLBT Resource Center, UCSC
Friday, February 25, 6 p.m.
$5 general/$3 students
RSVP: (831) 426-3332
Shabbat is the Jewish day of rest. This period from sunset on Friday to sunset on
Saturday that provides an opportunity for participants to appreciate things that
may slip by during the hectic moments of the week. Join Shalom Bochner and Hillel
students and staff for a spirited evening of song and stories including a veggie
organic dinner.
