About us
There are more than 1,000 artists colonies in the world today, but none of them are Jewish. African, Indian or feminist artist groups have their own communities, but only since New York City has become a safe haven for artists to explore and celebrate what it means to be a Jewishly oriented artist in the 21st century did the need arise for a Jewish artistic community.
Much of the work that has had a profound impact on contemporary culture has been nurtured in famous artist colonies by Jewish artists such as Mark Rothko, Etgar Keret, Gary Steingart, Michael Chabon, Philip Glass, Roy Lichtenstein, Helene Aylon, Bernard Malamud, Phillip Roth, Bob Dylan, Woody Allen, Larry Rivers, and Jonathan Safran Foer. Imagine what might have happened at a Jewish residency with all of those acclaimed Jewish artists.
Imagine a community where an award-winning Russian fiction writer is creating his next historical bestseller; an Argentinean sculptor is constructing a natural statue inspired in collaboration with a Jewish environmental organization; an Indian-American painter is creating blue angels based on Biblical stories; a Yemenite composer is collaborating with an Israeli modern dance group on a new composition based on Kabbalah; an American filmmaker is working with a major Jewish human rights and social justice organization on filming Jewish responses to hunger. While the Shofar FlashMob will provide a first encounter with the Shofar and the month of Elul, Art Kibbutz NYC intends to create more in-depth residency experiences for artists to explore and develop serious productions related to Jewish themes of interest.
In an economy where not only emerging artists, but often even accomplished artists are unable to make ends meet, Art Kibbutz NYC can offer a solution to the most expensive part of the creative process. A home, where Jewish arts organizations can bring their outstanding artists on retreats and place more emphasis on bringing them together in community. An environment, where emerging local artists can exchange experiences with internationally known masters, where advanced and beginner, young and old, religious and secular artists of various disciplines engage in dialogue about the most relevant issues of our times.
Much of the work that has had a profound impact on contemporary culture has been nurtured in famous artist colonies by Jewish artists such as Mark Rothko, Etgar Keret, Gary Steingart, Michael Chabon, Philip Glass, Roy Lichtenstein, Helene Aylon, Bernard Malamud, Phillip Roth, Bob Dylan, Woody Allen, Larry Rivers, and Jonathan Safran Foer. Imagine what might have happened at a Jewish residency with all of those acclaimed Jewish artists.
Imagine a community where an award-winning Russian fiction writer is creating his next historical bestseller; an Argentinean sculptor is constructing a natural statue inspired in collaboration with a Jewish environmental organization; an Indian-American painter is creating blue angels based on Biblical stories; a Yemenite composer is collaborating with an Israeli modern dance group on a new composition based on Kabbalah; an American filmmaker is working with a major Jewish human rights and social justice organization on filming Jewish responses to hunger. While the Shofar FlashMob will provide a first encounter with the Shofar and the month of Elul, Art Kibbutz NYC intends to create more in-depth residency experiences for artists to explore and develop serious productions related to Jewish themes of interest.
In an economy where not only emerging artists, but often even accomplished artists are unable to make ends meet, Art Kibbutz NYC can offer a solution to the most expensive part of the creative process. A home, where Jewish arts organizations can bring their outstanding artists on retreats and place more emphasis on bringing them together in community. An environment, where emerging local artists can exchange experiences with internationally known masters, where advanced and beginner, young and old, religious and secular artists of various disciplines engage in dialogue about the most relevant issues of our times.
History
Throughout Jewish history culture played a significant role in sustaining the Jewish people against waves of assimilation. While twenty years ago Bob Zimmerman changed his name to Bob Dylan, today Matityahu, an openly religious Jew is featured on prime time NBC. Today the New York area is a unique safe-haven for artists to relate to the art world while identified as Jews in a community of like-minded people.
With so many possibilities for pluralistic learning, grass-roots activism, and celebrating cultural diversity, artists are re-connecting to more ancient and deeper aspects of their heritage. Rather than basing their identity mainly on a reaction against something, they forge a positive identity in a new cultural context. Today we are celebrating Jewish diversity and artists’ unique contributions – that encourages audiences, spectators, readers to be proud of their Jewish heritage.
We would like to enable an influx of international, especially “European and Israeli mentality” on the American Jewish community and vice-versa. We’d like to enable Jewish artists to “think globally”. We aspire to create debates about a broad range of topics related to Jewish values to enrich the artists personally as well as the community itself.
With so many possibilities for pluralistic learning, grass-roots activism, and celebrating cultural diversity, artists are re-connecting to more ancient and deeper aspects of their heritage. Rather than basing their identity mainly on a reaction against something, they forge a positive identity in a new cultural context. Today we are celebrating Jewish diversity and artists’ unique contributions – that encourages audiences, spectators, readers to be proud of their Jewish heritage.
We would like to enable an influx of international, especially “European and Israeli mentality” on the American Jewish community and vice-versa. We’d like to enable Jewish artists to “think globally”. We aspire to create debates about a broad range of topics related to Jewish values to enrich the artists personally as well as the community itself.
Mission
The mission of the Art Kibbutz is to foster inter-cultural exchange, respect, community development and inspiring artwork on the global level through providing international (emerging and established) artists of exceptional talent with a space to work, learn, dialogue, connect and celebrate the 21st century Jewish experience with access to the vibrancy of NYC’s Jewish, social justice, environmental, spiritual and artist communities.
With its year around 3-8 week long residencies the Artist Colony aims to support artists in developing fresh and innovative projects as well as new collaborations exploring Jewish themes, Jewish responses, and dialogue related to current social, economic, ecological, human rights and psychological issues (eg. women’s and LGBT rights, the Jewish food movement, sustainability, environment, or Jewish responses to war, genocide and terror). The program will balance solitary work with a strong community-building element with daily learning and discussion, volunteer opportunities, community gardening (space permitting), personalized and collective networking opportunities bring international visibility to our resident artists.
With its year around 3-8 week long residencies the Artist Colony aims to support artists in developing fresh and innovative projects as well as new collaborations exploring Jewish themes, Jewish responses, and dialogue related to current social, economic, ecological, human rights and psychological issues (eg. women’s and LGBT rights, the Jewish food movement, sustainability, environment, or Jewish responses to war, genocide and terror). The program will balance solitary work with a strong community-building element with daily learning and discussion, volunteer opportunities, community gardening (space permitting), personalized and collective networking opportunities bring international visibility to our resident artists.
