Talking to my children about the PIttsburgh Synagogue Shooting

I wasn’t going to write anything about the shooting at the synagogue in Pittsburgh, because really, what more is there to say that hasn’t already been said? But as another friend pointed out, for some of you, I may be the only Jewish voice you hear.  So I will make sure to share, so that you know. 

I am rattled. I am shaken and scared. I am a religious Jew. I go to synagogue almost every week and I work for a Jewish organization. I bring my children to services and I watch my husband lead our congregation from the bima. I am an educator who has run synagogue schools for 12 years and taught in them for 18. I have been to Squirrel Hill many times over our years in Pennsylvania, and I am so so sad today. I am also angry. 

Angry because when I read that this shooting happened during a BABY NAMING I gasped so loud I could no longer keep this away from my 8 year old. And I couldn’t tell him what happened—not yet. I am going to read more, to try to figure out how to tell my children what happened in a way that won’t make them afraid to go to synagogue—the place we go every week—the place where their father works—and I just can’t think of a way to tell them this. But they go to Hebrew school and a Jewish Day School—so they will certainly hear about it, and that means I need to tell them first. But right now I just can’t. because then they will understand Anti-Semitism is about them. And that people don’t just shoot other people, but our people. That it could happen to them. And that shouldn’t matter, because we care about everyone. 

But actually, it does matter—this is about us, and it makes us scared and angry and so so sad.

I found a few articles for talking to children about Anti-Semitism that I thought might be helpful.  

PJ Library: How to Talk to Children about Anti-Semitism

Jewish Education in a Scary World

JSSA: Tips for Talking to Children about Anti-Semitism

Jteach: Art Based Techniques for Challenging Times


And that is all I have for right now.  

~Julie

I had an epiphany about my painting...and then about my life

I realized the other day, while I was working on a new painting, that my best work, the work that has the most depth, is usually accomplished by painting a new painting on top of an old one.  Why is that?  because what inevitably ends up happening is that I leave parts of the old painting visible in the new painting.  It is almost unrecognizable in the sense that the intention of the old painting is usually completely covered up--but small details, layers of color or shape, are woven in.  In doing this, the painting takes on more layers, more detail and usually a sense of freedom or etheriality.  The weaving of layers is an essential accident of my best work.

When I realized this I had two thoughts almost simultaneously--the first thought was I need to start doing this intentionally.  I decided to start creating "underpaintings" as a part of my process.  Many artists do this, at least with color washes--they paint a solid color or color wash onto their canvas before they begin a painting.  This way, when they paint, they are responding to a unified color throughout the work (instead of the stark white of a blank canvas).  My under painting idea is similar, but rather than wash the whole canvas in one color, i create  a very quick abstract image with multiple shapes and sections, and fill them in with paint or collage.  In doing this, essentially, I"m setting the stage for color play and shape integration by creating pieces that may or may not be woven into my final painting.

This is an underpainting--quick shapes and colors filling the canvas

My second insight was far more personal:  I have moved many times over the past few years.  I find it most striking when thinking in terms of my children and their lives.  My 12 year old son has lived in 8 homes during his life.  That is 5 states and 2 countries.  Considering I lived in the same state for my entire childhood until I graduated college, this moving around thing has been a surprising twist to my life that I could not have even imagined when I was a kid (I had never been on an airplane until I was 11 or 12--my son did his first cross Atlantic flight/move when he was 9 weeks old).

Moving around a lot has added shape and color to my life in ways that I'm not sure I can even explain or fully understand. And while many of the moves have been positive, there have also been challenges.  I certainly did not expect to move from Pennsylvania to Michigan with my boys last year only to move again this year to Maryland.  And while new is exciting, and we might like to think of our life as one big adventure, I am frankly over the adventure.  I would love to settle down, find a home, build a life and let my roots grow deep.

But back to the layers:  I realized, each time I move, each time I become part of a new community, I grow.  I create, or uncover, a piece of myself--and, like my paintings, I realized that as I move on, I become my best self by layering and weaving those pieces together.  SO while the moving has had its challenges, I also know that I am becoming the person I am supposed to be--growing, layering and learning as a result.

Dreaming of Home  36"x48" Mixed Media on Board

This painting, measuring 36" x 48" is the result of painting on top of an existing painting.  It is called "Dreaming of Home"--with each home representing a state or country I have lived in with my family: Michigan, New York, Israel, New Jersey, Pennsylvania,Michigan again and Maryland.

My New Book is Here!!!

My new book, Make, Create, Celebrate! Jewish Holidays Through Art (Behrman House, 2018) is here!!! It took me over two years to develop from concept to final product, which includes the book, a leaders/teachers guide and a series of how-to videos.  In many ways this is the book I always wanted to write, and it is a direct result of the work I have been doing in my Jewish Learning Through Art workshops.  It is part Jewish holiday resource book and part art journal.  It is written for 4th to 6th grade, but I've used parts of it with adults as well.  I am so so thrilled with how it turned out, and I am so excited to share it with you!

Click here to purchase your own copy of Make Create Celebrate! Jewish Holidays through Art

The publication  of this book happens to coincide with another big move for me.  I will be moving to Annapolis Maryland this summer, and I CANNOT WAIT to get to know our new home, meet the people of Maryland and bring my Jewish Learning Thru Art program to this awesome city.

Communal Collage Making and Class Legacy

Working with kids never ceases to amaze me.  I am continually impressed by their creativity, their insights and their talent.
A while back I spent an artist residency at Claysburg Kimmel High School, working with a group of seniors on a mural that will be their legacy to the school after they graduate.
We had a ton of fun and despite the serious senior-itis they were all experiencing (it was their final project before graduation), we got a lot done.

We started our process by talking about their class and what message they wanted to leave behind as they moved on.
They talked about how they were all individuals, coming from different backgrounds before starting school together.  Being a small rural community, most of these kids have known each other for most of their lives, but school has been their rock keeping them together.  They are now ready to move on and off into different directions.

From this conversation we talked about the metaphor of the tree, and how the roots were their individual identities, the trunk was their time together in school and the branches were their future paths as they take what they have learrned and move on.
They loved this idea and we ran with it in the creation of our work.

They really wanted to incorporate all the members of their senior class in the symbolism, so they decided to include things like their class flower and articles from the newspaper. They also decided to include the names of the entire senior class in the grass around the roots of the tree.  They invited every member of the senior class to add to the tree top, and we created circles for them to fill in with oil pastels and watercolor paint. 

We explored the concept of mixed media and they did everything from designing the work to creating painted papers to finding newspaper images to drawing to painting to collaging.  They worked collaboratively and regularly engaged in critical conversations to make sure that the work was progressing the way they wanted it to.  they were able to self-evaluate and to change course when things went awry. 
I was so impressed with their dedication to the project and their ability to work together to make something amazing.
I loved working with this group and am so excited by their final piece.