Artist creates ketubah for =
second=20
generation of patrons
November 8, 2010
By KARIE ANGELL LUC CONTRIBUTOR =
For years, Judith Joseph felt her art career was on =
the=20
right path.
But it wasn't until she heard from a mentor when =
Joseph=20
knew her artistic life had become "geographically =
bookmarked."=20
"What moves me is seeing the faces of my dear =
friends, who=20
were shy, coltish, crazy-in-love kids when I made =
their=20
ketubah in 1973," said Joseph, referring to a =
photograph of=20
her friend Rabbi Fred Wenger and his wife Rochelle. =
Both are=20
shown holding their framed ketubah, or Jewish marriage =
contract.
"It was Fred's idea -- he's the kind of guy who =
recognizes=20
a spark of potential in a person and nags them until =
they=20
blossom."
When Joseph was a teenager, she painted the =
Wenger's=20
ketubah after buying a book when she was 16.
"I was an arty kid, and I mentioned to Fred that I =
had=20
discovered a Jewish folk art I hadn't seen before -- =
the=20
decorative ketubah," recalls Joseph. "Fred's response =
was,=20
'You know, I'm getting married this summer. Why don't =
you make=20
my ketubah?'"
She made their ketubah. Years passed and Fred and =
Rochelle=20
raised two children, Haim and Miriam. Then one day, =
Joseph=20
heard Miriam was getting married.
"Miriam announced her engagement and they (Fred and =
Rochelle) called me to say that they wanted to =
commission me=20
to make her ketubah as their wedding gift to her," =
said=20
Joseph. "I told them they'd have to come up with =
something=20
else to give Miriam and her fiance, Daniel, because =
this one's=20
on me.
"The amazing thing is, Miriam and Daniel have my =
first=20
second-generation ketubah and their parents have the =
first one=20
I ever made," Joseph said. "It was truly beshert =
(destined)."=20
About that first ketubah, Joseph said, "When I look =
at the=20
primitive, shaky, faded work done by a kid who didn't =
know=20
about archival materials, it moves me."
While the ketubah's journey is literally =
handwritten in=20
Hebrew, Joseph's path has been fulfilling.
Today, Joseph coordinates the adult study program =
at=20
Glencoe's Congregation Hakafa, also maintaining their =
website.=20
She served on the board of Gallery 659 of Glencoe. She =
has=20
taught art classes at the Northbrook Park District, =
the North=20
Shore Art League, the Art Center of Highland Park, the =
Chicago=20
Botanic Garden, including 10 years teaching at =
Northside=20
Catholic Academy, a middle school in Chicago.
Raised in Milwaukee, Wis., Joseph is a University =
of=20
Wisconsin-Madison graduate. Married for 30 years to =
husband=20
Ted, the couple raised three sons, Cameron, 24, a =
Washington,=20
D.C. journalist and twins, Ethan and Emmett, 22, both =
recent=20
college graduates. Judith Joseph made her own ketubah =
which is=20
featured on a bedroom wall.
Fast-forward to 2010 and her ketubahs of today =
feature=20
rainbows of egg tempera paint. Favorite hobbies such =
as=20
cooking or landmarks like the Chicago River are =
included=20
according to each couple's interests and =
specifications.
"Egg tempera creates very brilliant color and =
allows for=20
very delicate, detailed brush strokes -- it's strong =
and=20
long-lasting," said Joseph.
"I love Botticelli, but also manuscript =
illuminators such=20
as the Limbourg Brothers and the Master of Catherine =
of=20
Cleves," said Joseph, who also enjoys Pablo Picasso. =
"They influenced me by telling stories in art with =
lots of=20
beautiful little details and brilliant color and =
pattern."=20
Last July, Joseph exhibited at Chicago's ARC =
Gallery on=20
Superior Street which featured Jewish folk art and her =
signature "The Owing Project." Opening night =
highlights and an=20
artist's talk were featured last month on "Spotlight =
on=20
Northbrook Arts," a program cablecasted on =
Northbrook's=20
government channel, NCTV Channel 17.
"We are in perilous times, and it seemed right to =
me to=20
engage the public in a dialogue about pressing social =
issues=20
in an interactive way, rather than just hang art on =
the wall,"=20
said Joseph, who handcrafted one character which =
resembles=20
Edvard Munch's 1893 painting, The Scream.
"The installation invited viewer participation by =
offering=20
a "Debt Confession Booth," where people could answer =
questions=20
about their debts and how they felt about it," said =
Joseph,=20
who also collected responses via Facebook.
"It's frightening how quickly our country slid from =
a=20
zero-deficit, booming peacetime economy to a debt =
crisis, wars=20
on two fronts and a collapse of the real-estate market =
in most=20
places," said Joseph. "It takes a long time to build =
and=20
nothing at all to tear down."
For Judith Joseph who earns a living at making art, =
building goodwill and lasting memories are worth more =
than=20
their weight in gold.
To view the artist's works, visit http://www.judithjosephstudio.com/ =
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