VEILED MEANING
Fashioning Jewish Dress
From the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem
November 3, 2017 – March 18, 2018
The Jewish Museum, New York
Woman’s coat, Bukhara, Uzbekistan, late 19th century. Brocaded silk, lining: silk and cotton, ikat-dyed. B64.12.4226. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. Photo by Mauro Magliani: © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem
The Israel Museum’s world-renowned collection of Jewish costumes showcases
over 100 articles of clothing from the eighteenth to twentieth centuries arranged
as complete ensembles or shown as stand-alone items.
A sumptuous array of apparel from over 20 countries on four continents
offers an exceptional opportunity to view many facets of Jewish identity
and culture through rarely seen garments.
Prayer shawl (tallit) Germany 18th century . Damask and brocade silk, gilt metal-cord lace. Gift of Jakob Michael, New York, in memory of his wife, Erna Sondheimer-Michael, B68.0178. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. Photo: © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, photograph by Mauro Magliani.
The exhibition illuminates the story of how diverse global cultures
have thrived, interacted, and inspired each other for centuries
The extraordinary range of textile designs and clothing in Jewish communities from Afghanistan, Algeria, Denmark, Egypt, Ethiopia, Germany, Georgia, Greece, India, Iran, Iraq, Iraqi Kurdistan, Israel, Italy, Libya, Morocco, Poland, Romania, Tunisia, Turkey, the United States, Uzbekistan, and Yemen are represented.
Bridal Jacket, Isfahan, Iran, early 20th century. Silk velvet, silver tinsel embroidery. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, B92.0433. Photograph © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Mauro Magliani.
Women’s outfit. Mashhad, Iran, early 20th century. Silk, silk velvet and cotton satin, gilt metal cord embroidery. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Purchased through the gift of Bruce Kovner, New York, B78.0749, B95.0735, B95.0737-0738. Photograph © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Mauro Magliani.
Color, texture, function, artistry, and craftsmanship.
The exhibition also offers an incisive and compelling examination
of diversity and migration through the lens of fashion.
Man’s coat. Georgia. early 20th century. Silk, gilt ribbons, silver niello, gunpowder cases. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Gift of Beckie Molho, Herzliya. 69.0460. Photograph © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Mauro Magliani
Wedding Sari. Bene Israel Community, India mid-20th century. Brocaded silk, silver and silk thread, B84.0629. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. Photo: © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, photograph by Mauro Magliani
Women’s festive coat dress and chemise. Baghdadi Jews, Calcutta, India, late 19th century ress: brocaded silk, gilt metal threads, lace and couched cords, braided and metal buttons; chemise: cotton, patchwork. Gift of Ramah Yehuda, London; Gift of Anne Menasseh, London, B68.0582-3, B85.0006. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. Photo: © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, photograph by Mauro Magliani.
The exhibition will focus on how clothes balance the personal with the social,
how dress traditions distinguish different Jewish communities, and how they portray
Jewish and secular affiliations within a larger societal context.
Women’s under-trousers (5 items) Uzbekistan early 20th century. Silk, plangi and ikat dyed, printed cotton. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, B64.12.4211, B66.07.1071, B66.12.1519, B67.0487, B14.0007. Photograph © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Mauro Magliani
Groom’s outfit with amuletic symbols. Zakho, Iraqi Kurdistan early 20th century. Goat hair, brocaded weave, floss silk embroidery; shirt: cotton; sash: artificial silk. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Gift of Itzhak and Zipporah Nahum, Menuha, purchased through the gift of Dr. Willy and Charlotte Reber, Valbella, Switzerland, B80.996, B78.0201, B76.0468. Photograph © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Mauro Magliani
Jewish women’s wrap (izar) and face veil. Baghdad, Iraq, late 19th – early 20th century, Silk, gilt metal thread, orsehair weave. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Gift of Helene Simon and Hanina Shasha, New York, in memory of their mother Louise Zilka née Bashi; Gift of Mazli Nawi, Ramat Gan, B79.0241, B58.0697. Photograph © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Mauro Magliani.
Woman’s festive attire, Tripoli, Libya early-mid 20th century. Wrap: artificial silk; blouse: chiffon silk; sash: silk. ift of Louise Djerbi, Jerusalem, in memory of Luly Raccah; Gift of Lillo Arbib, Bat Yam, in memory of his mother Ida Arbib née Nahum; Gift of the Moshav Uzah Synagogue, B83.0816, B79.206, B94.0096. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. Photo: © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, photograph by Mauro Magliani.
Women’s outfit, Tlemcen, Algeria, early 20th century. Silk satin, cotton lace, silk ribbons; blouse: embroidered tulle. The Zeyde Schulmann Collection in the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, B36.10.2330, B63.10.2412. Photograph © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Mauro Magliani
Women’s outfit (detail) Tlemcen, Algeria early 20th century. Silk satin, cotton lace, silk ribbons; blouse: embroidered tulle. The Zeyde Schulmann Collection in the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, B36.10.2330, B63.10.2412. Photograph © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Mauro Magliani.
Woman’s outfit, Alexandria (?) Egypt, 1920s. Cotton tulle, silver tinsel embroidery. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. Purchased through the gift of Dr. Willy and Charlotte Reber, Valbella, Switzerland, B77.0114. Photograph © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Elie Posner
Girl’s amuletic dress, Sana’a, Yemen 1930s. Cotton, indigo dyed, cotton thread embroidery, kauri shells. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, O.S B79.0014. Photograph © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Mauro Magliani
Boy’s blouse for a symbolic “children’s wedding”. Tafilalet, Morocco mid-20th century. Cotton, cotton-thread embroidery. The Zeyde Schulmann Collection in the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, B63.10.2680. Photograph © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Mauro Magliani
Groom’s outfit: coat worn over shrouds. Tetuan, Morocco, c. 1950. Coat: felted wool, silk cord embroidery; shrouds: cotton and linen, cotton-cord embroidery. The Zeyde Schulmann Collection in The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, B63.10.2405, B64.3992. Photograph © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Mauro Magliani
Woman’s wrap, (chader) and face veil, Afghanistan, mid-20th century. Cotton, netted silk-thread embroidery. Purchased through the gift of Dr. Willy and Charlotte Reber, Switzerland, B77.0466, B71.0526. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem Photo: © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, photograph by Mauro Magliani.
Hasidic Rebbe’s, Sabbath Coat, Jerusalem, contemporary. Silk and synthetic thread, appliqué synthetic velvet bands; belt: compound weave. Gift of Josef Grunwald, Ashdod, B09.1523, B09.1540. The Israel Museum, erusalem Photo: © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, photograph by Mauro Magliani
Organizer:
Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem is organized by The Israel Museum, Jerusalem.
The Israel Museum’s curatorial team includes Curator in Charge, Daisy Raccah-Djivre; Exhibition Curator, Efrat Assaf-Shapira; and Scientific Advisors, No’am Bar’am Ben-Yossef and Esther Juhasz. Claudia Nahson, Morris & Eva Feld Curator at the Jewish Museum, is Overseeing Curator for the New York presentation. The exhibition has been designed by Leslie Gill Architect.
Sponsors:
The Coby Foundation, Ltd., Barbara and Richard Lane, the Peter Jay Sharp Exhibition Fund, the Joan Rosenbaum Exhibition Fund, and the Alfred J. Grunebaum & Ruth Grunebaum Sondheimer Memorial Fund.
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The Museum was established in 1904, when Judge Mayer Sulzberger donated 26 ceremonial objects to The Jewish Theological Seminary as the core of a museum collection. Today, the Museum maintains a collection of over 30,000 works of art, artifacts, and broadcast media reflecting global Jewish identity, and presents a diverse schedule of internationally acclaimed temporary exhibitions.
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