Drorit Gur Arie, Raphaël Sigal.

Petach Tikva, Israel, 2016. 189 pp., illustrations: 40 col., 1 b&w, 31 × 22.6 cm. Hebrew and English.

9789657461204

Petach Tikva Museum of Art (26 November 2015–26 March 2016)

An exploration of the complex exchanges between people and books, and the connections, associations and interactions that bind together the book and the human body. Questions regarding the use-value and exhibition-value of books, the boundaries that distinguish a book from a work of art, a library from a museum, and a site of exhibition from a site of remembrance were examined through methodologies from the disciplines of material culture, ethnography, and fine art. 14 texts on select exhibits by various authors, including “Between a Mystical or Talismanic Garment and a Protective Robe for Bride and Mother” (Haviva Pedaya), focusing on an Iranian Jewish birth amulet from the Gross Family Collection, “Books of the Jews: A Phantom Presence” (Mathias Dreyfuss), on the confiscation, pillaging, and rediscovery of Jewish books, and “O Brother, Where Art Thou? Reflections on the Cairo Genizah and its Digitization” (Yaacov Choueka). 22 exhibits.

AMULETS
CAIRO GENIZAH
LOOTING OF ART/BOOKS
PHOTOGRAPHS

Iran/Persia
Shabbat rings

Exhibition poster, 7 b&w illus., 100 × 70 cm. Hebrew and English; Basic listing of exhibits, with map of exhibition space showing their location, scroll format, 99 × 16.5 cm. Hebrew and English.