"Nevertheless She Persisted" – Judith

This is the big new piece I made for "High Priestess" – the group show opening at at ArtShare LA this Saturday night, March 18 (details at the bottom of this post). It's a portrait of the (apocryphal) biblical heroine Judith, a "daring and beautiful widow" (h/t Wikipedia) who slays Israel's enemy, the general Holofernes, with his own sword and brings his head back to her fearful countrymen, in triumph; Israel is saved.

I find it astounding how many portraits of strong women use the "head bowed" posture – when men in similar narratives are usually shown with heads held high, basking in their own greatness. Women are traditionally shown as humble or modest in their achievements, undercutting their strength and undermining their accomplishments. Or at least that's the way I see it. So my Judith is shown with head bowed to subvert that model, and her sword shines bright as she contemplates what she's achieved. The handle of that sword addresses the dichotomy of representation of female heroes in traditional narratives – the negative attributes applied to women so that they remain unsure of their power and themselves, positioned above the verses from the Book of Judith which celebrate her. It's like the folks who set down these stories just couldn't handle a strong woman, and kept trying to chip away at female strength with stereotypical insults.

I've titled this papercut "Nevertheless She Persisted" after the words used just last month by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to attempt to silence the voice of Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). “Senator Warren was giving a lengthy speech,” said McConnell. “She had appeared to violate the rule. She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted.” Dick move, McConnell – and his words became a rallying cry for those, like me, who will not stand idly by and allow women's voices to be silenced. "Nevertheless, she persisted."

The papercut is made of cut-up comics featuring female super heroes, including Wonder Woman, the first female human Green Lantern Jessica Cruz, Mary Jane Parker, Black Canary, Scarlet, Elektra, and more. The words in Judith's face — "I've got no reason to be afraid any more" — come from a comic book called "The Wicked + The Divine" (written by Kieron Gillen and illustrated by Jamie McKelvie) attributed to a character named Inanna – who shares a name with the Babylonian goddess of love, wisdom, and war.

Want to hear more about it? And see it in person? Join me this Saturday night, March 18, from 7-10 pm, for the opening reception of "High Priestess" at ArtShare LA in downtown Los Angeles (801 E 4th Place, 90013.

Femininity is both an energy and an idea, and is not necessarily the same as femaleness — as these hypnotic and quasi-mystical works explore through images of secular mythology and cultural power.).

The show features a bunch of new work by me, as well as some wonderful art by Hagop Belian, Elena Johnson, Mirabelle Jones, Lois Keller, Erika Lizée, Rebecca McFarland, Lauren Mendelsohn-Bass, Lena Moross, Robert Nelson, Jason Pippen, Nataša Stearns, and Tslil Tsemet.

 Click here for more details.

Nevertheless She Persisted
24" x 36"
Mixed media
Isaac Brynjegard-Bialik
2017

Thank you for a great 2015

Whew! It's been a great year, and I am so pleased to have shared it with you!

Workshops up and down the West Coast (including Congregation Kol Ami, Temple Beth Hillel, and  Temple Ahavat Shalom), the new windows at Maimonides Jewish Day School in Portland, my annual residency at URJ Camp Newman, commissions galore, an enormous ketubah featuring Adam Strange and Emma Frost, winning a juror's award in "Heroes & Villains" at the Smithsonian-affiliated Annmarie Sculpture Garden and Arts Center, the opening of my latest show "Women of Valor and Other Super Heroes" at National Council of Jewish Women/Los Angeles, participating in the Jerusalem Biennale, presenting "To Boldly Go" to William Shatner... and so much more! Too much to put in one graphic, in fact!

To paraphrase "Hamilton" – I'll see you on the other side of the year...

"Women of Valor" Opening Reception

A big THANKS to everyone who came out to the opening of "Women of Valor and Other Super Heroes" this weekend – I had a great time, and I think you did too! Here are some photos from the event, including all of the photo booth shenanigans.

(And if you want to swing by NCJW/LA to see the show – 543 Fairfax in Los Angeles – contact Carrie Jacoves at 323/852 8512 or carrie@ncjwla.org to find out when you can visit.)

My muse/inspiration/bride and I, showing how it's done.

Really pleased with the vinyl wall graphics – they added some extra OOPMH to the exhibition.

Left: Hamsa Thwip. Right: This Is A Job For Us

Getting up close and personal with "Jacob and Esav"

Perhaps a fan of Marie Curie, on whose life "Radiant Energy" is based?

It's me, in action!

My girls manned the photo booth, where guests could step into a simulated papercut.

We premiered some rough footage of a documentary currently in production, titled "You did WHAT to my comics?!?"

Women of Valor and Other Super Heroes

This is it – the official blog announcement about my upcoming solo show, "Women of Valor and Other Super Heroes," at National Council of Jewish Women / Los Angeles.

Click on the thumbnail above to donwload the full-size flyer in handy JPEG format, or just make note of this important info:

Please join me at the free opening reception on Sunday, October 18, 2015, from 3 to 5 pm. I'll be speaking briefly at 4 pm, and we're planning a special presentation as well...!  The show will be open through November 30, 2015.

National Council of Jewish Women / Los Angeles is located at 543 North Fairfax Avenue, across from Fairfax High; a secure parking lot is accessible off of Clinton Avenue.

And apparently, reservations are appreciated (though not required); call Carrie at 323-852-8512 or carrie@ncjwla.org to let her know you're planning to come. (But even if you don't call, please do come!)

Save the date for my next solo show: Sunday, October 18, in Los Angeles

Please join me in Los Angeles at the National Council for Jewish Women on Sunday, October 18, from 3 to 5 in the afternoon for the opening reception for “Women of Valor and Other Super Heroes.”

Details are coming soon – but for now, please save the date to be there as I premiere a bunch of new work incorporating cut-up comics featuring all of your favorite heroes, including Wonder Woman, Gamora, Supergirl, Black Canary, Silk Spectre, and more.

Walking Together: The Lutz-Goldin Ketubah

The complete, finished ketubah (36" x 36")

This weekend my wife and I attended the wedding of Adam Lutz and Emma Goldin — friends of ours whose ketubah I created — at Temple Emanu-el in San Francisco, officiated by the groom's father, Rabbi Barry Lutz. It's always a privilege and a pleasure to be involved in a simcha, especially for such a cute couple!

I titled their ketubah "Walking Together," and it tells the story of their courtship, incorporating cut-up comics, maps, and other ephemera to reflect their unique story and the love they have for each other. Adam and Emma wrote the text of the ketubah, which is surrounded by the words of Hosea 2:21–22 (of special significance to the couple).

Signing the ketubah

Adam and Emma fell in love in Israel during their first year as students at Hebrew Union College, so their ketubah takes the form of a map of Jerusalem, where they were living at the time. Their dates were walks through the city, particularly before Shabbat, going from Emma’s apartment near Damascus Gate to Machane Yehuda — and the structure of the piece mirrors these special moments, encouraging the eye to travel along the paper paths and take in the scenery.

After cutting the top layer I was almost tempted to stop and call it perfect already...

There are pieces of a 1996 National Geographic map of Jerusalem showing the western side of the city and the paths that lead to Hebrew Union College, and a comic book snippet of golden apples alluding to the food stalls at Machane Yehuda (an appreciation for fine food being a shared trait of the bride and groom as well).

Adam and Emma continued walking after they moved to New York, and their ketubah includes part of an antique map of the island as well as comic pieces showing elements of the familiar skyline. As their wedding was celebrated at Temple Emanu-El, in addition to the Golden Gate Bridge and other architectural elements from the city there is also part of a vintage De Beers Diamonds advertisement from 1945 featuring the synagogue.

The speech bubbles are from an X-Men comic; the image of Temple Emanu-El from a vintage De Beers ad.

Adam’s name is represented by Adam Strange, a DC hero known for being a passionate and faithful husband, and Emma’s by Emma Frost, a Marvel hero who is also a passionate and loving partner. Emma says that if Adam had super powers he would be most like Professor X of the X-Men, because of his intelligence, and so he is also included in the ketubah — and so is Mister Terrific, known as one of the smartest heroes in the world.

Professor X is a stand-in for Adam, passionately calling out to his bride.

Emma calls to her love just as passionately.

Adam says that Emma’s beautiful voice might have its parallel in the powers of Black Canary, Dazzler and Siryn, who use their voices to fight for right. Adam’s Hebrew name, Ze’ev, is alluded to by the presence of a hero named Jack Russell who takes the form of a werewolf (and was raised in the greater Los Angeles area), while Emma’s Hebrew name, Devorah, is alluded to in the black-and-yellow honeybee-like costume of Siryn. There’s even a panel in which Adam Strange meets Black Canary, from a 1975 issue of Justice League of America in which Adam (finally) gets married.

I bought a 1975 issue of Justice League of America because it featured Adam's wedding,
but it also had this surprisingly perfect panel I decided to incorporate.

There are numerous wedding details in the ketubah, including rings and declarations of love, and white roses as well, which Emma will carry on her wedding day. The observant viewer will also find references to the glass they broke under the hupah, and the wine that they shared there. And of course, a few pieces of their wedding invitation.

The background comics include:

• Action Comics #233 (November 2013)
• Adam Strange #1 (November 2004), #2 (December 2004)
• Astonishing X-Men #10 (May 2005), #14 (June 2006), #27 (November 2008), #36 (April 2011), #51 (August 2012) – rings and white roses, #62 (July 2013)
• Batman: The Dark Knight #4 (February 2012)
• Birds of Prey #16 (March 2013)
• Captain Atom #3 (January 2012)
• Daredevil #1 (May 2014) – New York skyline
• Dazzler #2 (April 1981)
• Dream Logic #4 (October 2011)
• Giant-Size Kung Fu Bible Stories #1 (July 2014)
• Giant-Size X-Men #3 (2005)
• Green Arrow #30 (April 2010) – Sing, Canary, Sing!
• Infinite Vacation #5 (January 2013)
• Justice League #33 (October 2014), #34 (December 2014)
• Justice League of America #121 (August 1975) – Adam’s wedding
• Max Ride #4 (June 2015)
• Mister Terrific #2 (December 2011) – Golden Gate Bridge
• ODY-C #1 (November 2014)
• Revival #16 (December 2013)
• Strange Adventures #1 (May 2009), #2 (June 2009)
• Superman #226 (April 2006), #23.3 (November 2013)
• Wolverine: Xisle #1 (June 2003)
• X-Factor #244 (November 2012)
• X-Force #16 (November 1992) – Siryn