THE EXHIBITION
An installation of nearly sixty paintings, the exhibition draws the viewer
into the universe of the artist's childhood in Poland before the Holocaust.
He roams the streets and courtyards of the town, capturing the details of daily life and the personalities of those who lived and worked there: the pregnant hunchback, who stood under the wedding canopy just hours before giving birth; the kheyder teacher caught in bed with the drummer"s wife; the cobbler's son, who was dressed in white pajamas all his life to fool the angel of death; the corpse that was shaved; and the "black wedding" in the cemetery during a cholera epidemic.
Supplementary Materials
- an audio guide and sound environment that includes narration Mayer's voice, in conversation with Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett;
- a documentary film, Shtetl (Jack Kuper, 1995) about Mayer Kirshenblatt and his work;
- full-color companion book (University of California Press), about 400 pages, that integrates Mayer"s images and words;
- innovative educational materials for middle- and high school students to encourage the creation of intergenerational documentary projects in a variety of media. For an example please view:
Samberg Family History Program
