We have a busy month ahead:
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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11 ONLINE |
Samson Schames, Blowing the Shofar, c. 1956. Glass tiles on glass, 56 x 71 cm. Jewish Museum Frankfurt
Samson Schames (1898-1967) came from a long-established Jewish family in Frankfurt am Main. With the support of his uncle, renowned gallery owner Ludwig Schames, he made his way into the 1920s art scene and began his training as a painter, graphic artist, and stage designer. Schames’ designs, drawings, and oil paintings from the period up to 1933 testify to his deep connection to Frankfurt and her landscapes.
After the National Socialists rose to power, Schames immigrated to London in 1939, where he began creating innovative mosaics from shards of glass, porcelain, and crockery—the material evidence of the bombings.
Lecture by Annika Friedman, introduced by Rachel Stern.
This event is sponsored by Ilona Oltuski in memory of Ruth Drory.
We all know her designs, and I am excited that her daughter agreed to share her knowledge, memories and insights with us:
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 25 ONLINE
12:00 pm EST / 18:00 Uhr CET
”EVA ZEISEL, DESIGNER EXTRAORDINAIRE”
Eva Zeisel, Red Wing Pottery pieces from “Town and Country” collection. Glazed earthenware, ca. 1945. Copyright Eva Zeisel Estate
Eva Zeisel (born Éva Amália Striker, Budapest 1906 –2011 New City, New York) was one of the most important designers of the 20th century. She believed that beautiful things make people happy. Although she was known for her ceramic tableware, she also designed in glass, wood, plastic and metal. Her designs are in major museums around the world, including the Metropolitan Museum, the British Museum and MoMA, where she had the first one woman show in 1946.
Eva Zeisel died in 2011 at the age of 105. Her designs are still on the market.
Lecture by Eva’s daughter Jean Richards, who will also read from and discuss the memoir of Eva’s 16 months in a Soviet prison (1937-38) during the Stalinist purges.
And then there is our exhibition in Leipzig, Germany, which was
JUST EXTENDED TO JANUARY 14, 2024:
“Emmy Rubensohn! Networker and Music Patron –
from Leipzig to New York”
at the GRASSI Museum in Leipzig, Germany
I am excited to share David Dambitsch’s exhibition review at Deutschlandfunk, which aired September 29:
Emmy Rubensohn (Leipzig 1884-1961 New York) was a music promoter, concert manager and letter writer. Born in Leipzig in 1884 as the daughter of the Jewish entrepreneurial Frank family, she attended Gewandhaus concerts from an early age, collected autographs and had many meetings with composers and music interpreters.
At that time, Leipzig was the fourth-largest city in Germany. It hosted international trade fairs and played a leading role in publishing and librarianship. It was also considered the capital of the women’s movement, where Louise-Otto Peters, Auguste Schmidt and Henriette Goldschmidt lived and worked. In 1911, the first German university for women opened there.
Adolf Neumann, The Leaders of the Women’s Movement in Germany, 1883. In: Die Gartenlaube no. 44
This Sunday, October 8, at the GRASSI Museums, two programs celebrate Emmy Rubensohn:
At 4:30pm, a tour will take you through the stages of Emmy Rubensohn’s life, starting in Leipzig, via Kassel, Berlin and Shanghai to New York. It will then focus on empowerment of women in Leipzig.
At 6:00pm, a concert features students at the “Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy” University of Music and Theater in Leipzig, who interpret works by Ernst Krenek and Darius Milhaud.
Exhibition curators: Matthias Henke and Rachel Stern.
The exhibition was organized by the GRASSI Museum für Völkerkunde, the GRASSI Museum für Musikinstrumente, and the Fritz Ascher Society for Persecuted, Ostracized and Banned Art in New York. The exhibition’s patron is Ken Toko, US Consul General for Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia.
Last not least, we invite those who are in the New York City area to an important screening at the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan:
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 24
7:45 PM EST
”JUNE ZERO”
Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan
Israel, 1962. After an emotional public trial, Adolf Eichmann has been tried and sentenced to death for crimes against humanity and the Jewish people. June Zero follows three characters involved in this nation-defining event: David, a 13-year-old Libyan immigrant who works in the factory where Eichmann’s corpse was incinerated; Hayim, a Moroccan guard assigned to Eichmann’s jail cell; and Micha, a Polish survivor of Auschwitz and chief interrogator at the trial. These three seemingly disparate characters are inexorably connected in this seminal moment of Jewish history.
Screening followed by Q+A with director Jake Paltrow.
In partnership with The Fritz Ascher Society for Persecuted, Ostracized and Banned Art and American Society for Yad Vashem.
YOUR SUPPORT MAKES OUR WORK POSSIBLE.
The Fritz Ascher Society is a not-for-profit 501(c)3 organization. Your donation is fully tax deductible. THANK YOU.
We look forward to seeing you in person or online!
Chag Sukkot Sameach to those who celebrate,
And best wishes to all,
Rachel Stern
Executive Director
