July 5, 2018

The Israel Museum in Jerusalem boasts a collection of more than half a million artifacts, but until recently, few items related to Israeli fashion were among them. 

Two years ago, when the museum decided to devote an exhibition to the history of Israeli fashion in honor of Israel’s 70th anniversary, its curators needed to search outside the museum’s walls. 

“Fashion Statements: Decoding Israeli Dress,” which opened last month, is the largest-scale exhibition of Israeli fashion ever mounted in an Israeli museum. It begins with the desert-inspired clothing and khaki shorts of the early pioneers and ends with runway-ready haute couture created by contemporary Israeli designers. 

In between, it examines the ideological tug-of-war between those who favored utilitarian clothing and those who wanted to dress like well-heeled Europeans and Americans.  

Starting a collection nearly from scratch “felt like we were inventing the wheel,” said Daisy Raccah-Djivre, the head curator. “We asked ourselves, ‘Is there such a thing as Israeli fashion?’ ‘What is Israeli fashion?’ ”  

After sifting through a range of archives and consulting with fashion experts, the curators discovered that Israeli fashion does have a unique history rooted in both its immigrant culture and Middle Eastern landscape. 

It “mirrors the tapestry of Israeli society,” Raccah-Djivre said. “We see a special genealogy from one designer to another.” 

Curator Efrat Assaf-Shapira said Israel’s status as the Holy Land played a significant role in the early years of Israeli fashion, even before the establishment of the Jewish state. “You see it in the materials, the colors, the typography,” Assaf-Shapira said.

All three are reflected in the earth-tone wool “desert coats” designed by Hungarian-born Fini Leitersdorf. In the 1950s, she joined the famous Maskit fashion house launched by Ruth Dayan, wife of Moshe Dayan. Created to employ new immigrant artisans from around the world, Maskit designed high-end clothing, rugs and other items.

Alongside the desert coats in the exhibition stands a sleeveless white gown adorned with dozens of light-colored seashells found on Israel’s long Mediterranean coast.

In the years before Israeli homes had air conditioning, Israeli clothes were often “less tailored” due to the country’s high temperatures for much of the year, Assaf-Shapira said. “We see a lot of sun,” even in designs by Israelis living countries where the weather is often dreary. 

Israel’s multiculturalism is reflected in several segments of the exhibition. One group of designs incorporates elements of a tallit, either via stripes reminiscent of a prayer shawl or with clusters of ornate silver or gold on the upper bodice. 

Another grouping incorporates the intricate embroideries of Yemenite artisans who arrived in the 1940s and early ’50s, and the Bucharans and Uzbeks who made aliyah in the 1980s. 

Still another grouping reveals the influence of Palestinian and Arab culture on Israeli fashion, with Jewish designers incorporating either Palestinian-made embroidery or cloth patterns of traditional Arab keffiyehs — the head coverings worn by many Arab men in parts of the Middle East — into their clothes. 

These brightly colored, richly textured clothes stand in sharp contrast to the famously unadorned clothes worn by kibbutzniks and many other Israelis from the early 1900s through the 1950s. 

Displayed in the second gallery alongside period footage of farmers and factory workers, and young people dancing the hora, the simple dresses, short-sleeved shirts, pants and shorts are remarkably bland, perfectly capturing the priorities and ethos of that time in history. 

“What we found striking was the ideology that set the aesthetic,” curator Noga Eliash-Zalmanovich said, pointing to more than a dozen tan, khaki and light blue outfits made of cotton, many of them manufactured by ATA, the first Israeli company to design and manufacture textiles and clothing locally. “Material asceticism was considered a virtue. It resonated with the pioneering spirit.” 

Not all Israelis dressed this way, of course. Directly opposite these socialist-inspired clothes, a revolving platform showcases richly designed dresses from the 1940s and ’50s. 

In Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, European Jews who immigrated to Israel established couture businesses, continuing the professions they had in their home countries. Fashion magazines, which were launched in the 1930s, were full of Israeli-designed clothes made from expensive fabrics. 

Suddenly, magazines like Vogue were devoting entire issues to the fashion — from Gottex swimsuits to Beged Or leather goods — emerging from Israeli factories and showrooms.

The fashion industry underwent great changes in the 1960s and ’70s, when, thanks to generous support from the Israeli government, Israel began to manufacture a sizable amount of clothing. For a time, clothing became the country’s second-largest export industry. Suddenly, magazines like Vogue were devoting entire issues to the fashion — from Gottex swimsuits to Beged Or leather goods — emerging from Israeli factories and showrooms. 

This “golden age” of Israeli manufacturing came to an end due to domestic economic woes and the relatively high costs of manufacturing in Israel compared with the Far East. 

The exhibition ends on a high note, with 14 cutting-edge pieces created by some of Israel’s most famous designers with an international reputation and clientele. 

One dazzling three-dimensional design was created by Noa Raviv, whose 3-D clothes “blur the line between art and wearable fashion,” Eliash-Zalmanovich said. “There’s a lot of research into new materials, new markets, new ideas.” 

Alon Livne, whose bridal gowns are coveted the world over, also has designed custom-made gowns for celebrities including Beyoncé and Kim Kardashian. 

Eliash-Zalmanovich said that for every household-name designer there are many others working out of their living rooms, dreaming of opening a studio. “It’s not easy making it as a designer today,” she admitted. 

The curator expressed hope that “Fashion Statements” will inspire fledgling designers and the public. “We hope the exhibition will start a conversation about fashion in Israel. About creativity. About possibilities. About the future.”

 “Fashion Statements: Decoding Israeli Dress” will run through April 29, 2019.

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Michele Chabin is an award-winning journalist who reports from Jerusalem. 

American musical legend Leonard Bernstein was a well-known insomniac who did some of his best composing — and most energetic socializing — long after bedtime. He’d invite friends to his home, with its two grand pianos in the living room, and talk and play music late into the night.

The charming, insightful cabaret show “Late Night With Leonard Bernstein,” which drew a capacity crowd to the Skirball Cultural Center’s auditorium on June 24, takes as its conceit the idea that we’re all guests at this late-night salon.

The show is narrated by Jamie Bernstein, Leonard Bernstein’s oldest daughter and author of the humorous, intimate book “Famous Father Girl: A Memoir of Growing Up Bernstein.” She shares the stage with pianists Michael Boriskin and John Musto, and soprano Amy Burton, all members of New York City’s Copland House ensemble.

The set design referenced Leonard Bernstein’s  elegant living room, with two Steinway grand pianos facing off with each other. A leather club couch sat at an angle to one side of the pianos; and two gray, upholstered armchairs sat on the other side, each accented with a scarlet pillow. Oriental rugs in that same deep red covered the floor, and a few large potted plants added to the intimate, homey vibe.

As she introduced the musical pieces, Jamie Bernstein shared glimpses of her father’s process and personality. She then sat in one of the gray armchairs to listen as the musicians performed Bernstein’s compositions as well as selections from some of his favorite works by Aaron Copland, Franz Schubert, Edvard Grieg, Zez Confrey, Noël Coward and Ernesto Lecuona, among others. The evening also included an old, scratchy recording of her father playing a composition-in-progress, and a short video clip of him singing.

The composer, who would have been 100 years old this August, is known for writing the music for “West Side Story,” “On the Town,” “Peter Pan” and “On the Waterfront,” among others. He wrote in many styles and collaborated with some of the best musicians of his day. He was also the musical director of the New York Philharmonic, and lectured about classical music on television from the mid-1950s until his death in 1990.

In the Skirball show, Jamie Bernstein shared details about her father that might be new to his casual admirers, such as the fact that Bernstein composed little ditties for friends, and often later built entire shows around these musical riffs.

A version of this show has toured the country for a few years, but because Jamie Bernstein now has a book out, it felt partly like a musical tribute and partly like a super-augmented book reading.

Uri Herscher, the Skirball’s founding president and current CEO, introduced the show as a look at the legacy that Jamie Bernstein inherited from her father. While inheritances are often valued in terms of dollars, Herscher said, we inherit much more from our parents than money. We also inherit a cultural heritage, and telling stories is a way to narrate what we’ve inherited and ensure that it lives on, he added.

Jamie Bernstein shared a deep love and appreciation for her father’s work and spirit. She spoke in a glowing, tender, slightly ribbing way about his home life, his dedication to music and his very public creations. As she sat listening to the musicians, she nodded her head and smiled,  and then applauded with gusto when they finished. You could imagine her as a young girl staying up late, engrossed in the joyful sounds, experimentation and playfulness on display in her home. 

Her book-reading-cum-cabaret is a lovely way to honor her family and her legendary father’s cultural legacy.

The exhibition Leonard Bernstein at 100, organized by the Grammy Museum, is on view at the Skirball Cultural Center through Sept. 2.

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Wendy Paris is a writer living in Los Angeles.

When filmmaker Eli Steele went to register his son, Jack, for an L.A. Unified School District school four years ago, officials told him he had to check a primary race on the application. If he didn’t, they would not enroll his son. This was a problem for Steele, because Jack is Black, Jewish, Hispanic, Native American and White. 

“I knew the race question would come up,” Steele said. “What I was not expecting was the terminology on the form. There was no multiracial or ‘check all that apply’ option.” 

Steele recorded school officials telling him to pick a primary race and giving him differing advice. Some said to mark “White” while others said “Black.” He eventually checked “Black,” because he didn’t want to deny his son an education. 

“My objective was to show the world what I have experienced my entire life,” he said, “that no one really knows what they are talking about when it comes to race.” 

Steele took his footage and expanded what happened into a full-length documentary called “How Jack Became Black.” The movie, currently available through video on demand, iTunes and Amazon, features interviews with professors and multiracial individuals, and it highlights the history of race in America, the racial divides happening today and Steele’s upbringing.

Steele was born in the 1970s to a Black father and a Jewish mother, whose parents were Holocaust survivors. “My grandfather did not approve of my mother’s marriage to my father because he believed that Jews had a responsibility to carry on Judaism after the Holocaust and because my father was Black,” he said.

Steele grew up with both cultures. In the film, he talks about how his childhood and early adulthood were difficult not only because he was mixed race but because he is deaf and was bullied by his peers. When a teacher asked his classmates who they wanted to win the presidential election in 1984, everyone except for Steele said Ronald Reagan. Steele wanted Jesse Jackson but was torn when Jackson made a racial slur against Jewish people. 

“My objective was to show the world what I have experienced my entire life, that no one really knows what they are talking about when it comes to race.” — Eli Steele

Later, when Steele was applying to UCLA, he knew he could check the “African-American” box and have a better chance of getting in, but he chose to leave his race blank and was not admitted. 

“We should ask why LAUSD was willing to violate the California Constitution to deny enrollment to a kid for an unchecked race box,” he said. “We should also ask if these boxes are truly making us better as a society or are they actually blinding us to deeper, more human-related problems.”

When audiences watch “How Jack Became Black,” Steele hopes he can help them understand where society stands with race today. 

“I know I have a unique view of things due to my multiracial identity and ability to move through different parts of American society,” he said. “It is my hope that by conveying my unvarnished and somewhat uncomfortable views in good faith that we can begin to ask if we truly are on the right path to a better America.” 

Jewish Artists Initiative (JAI) curators Georgia Freedman-Harvey and Anne Hromadka Greenwald spent the fall of 2016 readying a proposal to participate in the 2017 Jerusalem Biennale, one of the world’s premier showings of Jewish contemporary art. Not lost on them was the significance of its submission deadline — two days after the contentious presidential election. 

“We knew that no matter what happened, that as a group of artists from the United States, if our exhibition idea was selected, we’d be a voice at a drastically changing time,” Hromadka Greenwald told guests gathered at MuzeuMM, a mid-City gallery. 

Attendees gathered for the June 24 opening of “Flashpoints: A Collective Response,” organized by JAI, a local, artist-run organization founded in 2004 that fosters the work of Jewish artists. 

Guests had the opportunity to socialize with the artists while viewing the five murals that make up “Flashpoints,” one of three North American exhibitions to debut at Biennale venues in Israel’s capital last fall along with nearly 30 other exhibitions from around the world. Each offered an artistic response to the broad theme of “Watershed.” 

“We wanted to offer perhaps our response to what we saw as a growing divide,” Hromadka Greenwald said, “and that maybe the way forward is through our traditions as Jews that often teach us we’re better together than we are apart.”

The exhibition’s large, striking murals were labeled “Water,” “Nationalism,” “Civil Rights,” “Human Rights” and “Political Polarization” — employing imagery that reflects hot-button issues like immigration and criminal justice reform. 

“No one could’ve guessed that the various topics we picked are only more magnified and more unresolved today,” Freedman-Harvey said.  

The curators envisioned an atypical exhibition. They tasked selected JAI artists with adopting a surrealist concept known as “exquisite corpse,” an old parlor game involving artists adding to an assembled composition. Pioneered by early 20th century French surrealists, the method served as an absurdist response to a Europe post-World War I and in the throes of  World War II. 

“It was their way of doing political protest,” Hromadka Greenwald said. “Inspired by that, we then wanted to put together an exhibition that tapped into the shifting winds that we couldn’t exactly predict.” 

Teams of three or four JAI artists worked together for nearly two years to assemble paneled, stitched-together murals that combined mediums including mixed media, collage, watercolor and oil painting. One section of the gallery displayed artists’ working sketches that outlined the painstaking process of developing individual pieces that ultimately contributed to the whole. 

Melinda Smith Altshuler, 64, who helped create the four-paneled “Civil Rights” mural, said, “Seeing everything come to fruition, the two-year process and all of the teamwork behind it, is a wonderful, enriching experience.” Her section, “Justice Bleeding,” is a mixed-media collage of weighted scales. “In the piece, I’m dialoguing about how much of the balance of righteousness is available to all of us as citizens,” she explained. 

Nearby, Randi Matushevitz, 53, ruminated on her work, “Water as Industry,” a section of the four-piece “Water” tapestry. In it, a desperate, naked figure crawls on a cracked desert floor and cups water leaking from an ominous, looming water tower. 

The exhibition’s large, striking murals were labeled “Water,” “Nationalism,” “Civil Rights,” “Human Rights” and “Political Polarization” — employing imagery that reflects hot-button issues like immigration and criminal justice reform. 

“Water is so precious and clean water, that’s the diamonds of today,” she said. “The situation in Flint, Mich., still isn’t fixed. Here there’s this thirst, crawling through the desert. That’s the crux of it. What is water? Water is precious. It’s life. We need this. It’s vital.”

The MuzeuMM showing also featured the varied works of 16 JAI artists that didn’t appear alongside the Biennale murals in Jerusalem last year. 

Despite the fact an estimated 30,000 visitors saw “Flashpoints” during the Biennale, JAI President Ruth Weisberg believes it was important to bring the exhibition home — something her organization didn’t do after it showed works at the 2015 iteration in Jerusalem. 

“It’s very exciting to share this with the Los Angeles community,” Weisberg said. “I think it gives a sense of the amplitude of the Jewish art experience. We’ve had our showings in Jerusalem, but this time, this opportunity to bring it back here will hopefully create a lot more awareness about what we’ve done with such an ambitious show that’s also so timely.”

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“Flashpoints” is on view through July 8 at MuzeuMM, 4817 W. Adams Blvd., Los Angeles. (323) 533-0085.