In Conversation with Art and Scroll Studio

Looking forward to talking with Shelley Werner of Art and Scroll Studio about my work, its origins, my golem series, and the new stuff I have planned for the coming months.

 

 

Register for FREE tickets: https://bit.ly/IsaacBrynjegard-Bialik

Deep Space Shiviti

“Deep Space Shiviti” is a papercut I created for Rabbi Paul Kipnes in December 2019, commissioned as a birthday present by his family. It is modeled on the traditional Jewish shiviti, a meditative artwork inspired by words from Psalms 16:8: “I have always placed the Eternal before me,” intended to inspire an appropriate frame of mind for prayer and contemplation. The shiviti traditionally incorporates a seven-branched menorah, words drawn from Jewish texts, kabbalah, and other mystical sources; this one also features cut-up comic books.

“Deep Space Shiviti” is a contemporary and personal interpretation of this traditional form, built around a vision from the fourth chapter of the book of Zechariah, which describes a lampstand of gold, feeding into and being fed by two olive trees, one on either side. It is a vision of replenishment and renewal, of resilience and rededication. Surrounded on both sides by the twelve gems of Aaron’s priestly breastplate (an allusion to Rabbi Kipnes’ Hebrew name), the menorah stands in front of the Kotel in Jerusalem, reinvented as a place where everyone stands together for inspiration and connection.

The words and imagery in “Deep Space Shiviti” are drawn from comic books — two kinds in particular: Star Trek comics and comics featuring Jewish super heroes. The name “Deep Space Shiviti” is itself a reference to Rabbi Kipnes’ guest appearance on an episode of “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.”

There are allusions to Rabbi Kipnes’ family and community; to places close to his heart; to his roles as husband, father, rabbi... and as a man true to himself. The papercut contains camp cabins, maps of wondrous places, and images of light and inspiration.

There is the Bat Signal, another lighted symbol of hope; Yggdrasill, the “world tree” whose roots and branches support and connect the fabled Nine Realms; and Deep Space Nine, a home to a diverse group of people with different backgrounds who are united in a common cause (and also of special meaning to Rabbi Kipnes). The papercut also features multiple Jewish super heroes, including Kitty Pryde and Benjamin “The Thing” Grimm — the former with her “Hold Fast” tattoo and the latter holding his Star of David necklace; Black Canary, whose commitment to heroism is matched by her commitment to handing down her super heroic beliefs and practices to the next generation; and Spider-Man, who reminds us that with great power must also come great responsibility.

The papercut includes:
All-New X-Men #13 (Aug 2013)
Astonishing X-Men #36 (Apr 2011)
Batwoman #3 (Jan 2012), #16 (Mar 2013)
Booster Gold #19 (Jun 2009)
The Life of Captain Marvel #1 (Oct 2018)
Dazzler #38 (Jul 1985) – “Light”, #1 (Aug 2018)
Excalibur #66 (Jun 1993)
Fantastic Four #56 (Aug 2002)
The Legion of Super-Heroes #503 (Sep 1983)
Tales of the Legion of Super-Heroes #352 (Oct 1987)
Lumberjanes: A Bird’s Eye View (Dec 2017
Marauders #2 (Jan 2020)
Noble Causes: Distant Relatives #2 (Sep 2003)
The Ray #1 (May 1994)
Scarlet #8 (May 2016)
Star Trek Movie Special: Star Trek III (1984)
Star Trek: The Next Generation #24 (Oct 1991)
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine #1 (Aug 1993)
Star Trek: Year Five #1 (Apr 2019)

The Oak of the Golden Dream and Other “Dreams, Prophecies, and Visions”

He Dreamed – 18" x 24" – 2018

JOIN THE GOLD RUSH! MAKE MONEY FAST! These and other enticements to “get rich quick” are found surrounding a twisting, twining papercut oak tree made of cut-up comic books in Isaac Brynjegard-Bialik’s new solo exhibition, “Dreams, Prophecies, and Visions” at The MAIN Gallery in Newhall, California (September 18 – October 12, 2018). His work is strongly anchored in myths and stories — often those of the bible, but also extending past those borders into a broader exploration of cultural narratives. His papercuts are a riot of color and voices, made of cut-up comic books he has reassembled to tell stories of dream and prophecy.

“He Dreamed” is the centerpiece of the show, based on the story of the first discovery of gold in California, in nearby Placerita Canyon. According to the legend of the Oak of the Golden Dream, wandering laborer Francisco Lopez fell asleep under an oak tree and dreamed of gold, then awoke to find some in the very ground he had slept on.

“But that’s not the whole story,” adds the artist. “Lopez was a university-educated metallurgist, and his success wasn’t from luck or a vision, but from actual training and experience.” Brynjegard-Bialik’s papercut is a gorgeous, sexy oak tree spreading its branches across the sky, and includes the super hero Sandman — who operates in the land of dreams — as well as cut-up get-rich-quick advertisements, “because I want to play with the distinction between prophetic visions in dreams and the realization of those dreams through individual work and effort.”

The rest of the show plays in that same arena; Brynjegard-Bialik’s work is a mash-up of traditional sources and contemporary story-telling techniques, recontextualizing bits and pieces of his childhood comic book collection to delve deeply into our oldest and newest stories. He uses Superman and other undocumented aliens in portraits of American immigrant dreamers, he builds a protective whirlwind of cloud and fire from comics featuring the Invisible Woman, and imagines Doctor Strange wandering the rocky hillside of the ancient and mystical city of Tzfat.

“Brynjegard-Bialik brings these different types of stories together in the complex but clean layers of his papercuts,” wrote Shana Dambrot for KCET Artbound, “creating new meanings for the world's oldest stories as he engineers these combinations with the architectural presence of stained glass, the whimsy of gilded-age fairy tales, and the meditative aura of illuminated manuscripts.”

The opening reception for “Dreams, Prophecies, and Visions: You did WHAT to my comics?!?” will be held at The MAIN Gallery on Thursday, September 20, from 7 to 10 pm.



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“Dreams, Prophecies, and Visions: You did WHAT to my comics?!?”
Exhibition dates: September 18 – October 12, 2018
Opening reception: Thursday, September 20, from 7 to 10 pm
The MAIN Gallery

24266 Main Street
Newhall, California  91321
(661) 290-2255

All Hands on Deck: Fingerprint Mosaics at Camp Newman

You may have already read the whole story – how this summer at URJ Camp Newman my wife (Rabbi Shawna B2) and I led campers in the creation of new tallitot (prayer shawls) for the camp, one session at a time.

Each tallit is a fingerprint mosaic, where each camper had a chance to add their personal mark. The idea was that fingerprints are personal, but combined together they create a mosaic-like pattern, creating a communal work rather than an individual one — and that it would take the fingerprints of the whole eidah (session) to create a finished work. (And a big thank-you to Rabbi Laura Novak Winer, who worked with us on all of these talliot!)

If you haven't read that post, please go check it out on the camp blog: https://campnewman.org/2018/07/06/all-hands-on-deck-fingerprint-mosaics-at-camp-newman/. But here's something the post  doesn't have: pictures of all of the finished tallitot, which we're pleased to share here.

Avodah is dedicated to community involvement and social justice,
so their tallit is a rainbow flag they took to the 2018 Pride Festival

Tzofim's tallit is a Jerusalem skyline, complete with turrets and archways.

Rishonim is out "nature" session, so they made a tree – with a branch for each of their twelve "tribes."

Bogrim made the seven species: grapes, dates, wheat, barley, figs, olives, and pomegranates.

The CITs are celebrating "C-CHAI-T" this year so their handprints surround a chai, with advisors' hands blessing them from the sides. (This shot is the ALMOST-done tallit; we were waiting for two late arrivals to complete it.)

Hagigah's tallit is an abstract representation of waves,
in honor of Camp Newman's first summer "by the bay."

Faculty and staff made a tallit as well – "Miriam's Well," with a quote from Amos 5:24:
"Let justice roll down like water, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream."

And if you want more information on what we can do with your community, check us out on the web at www.PaperMidrash.com.

Oak of the Golden Dream

In My Dreams
12" x 12"
Mixed media
2018

This is one of the papercuts that I'll be premiering in a new local show this fall, courtesy of Santa Clarita Arts. It's not up on their calendar yet, but here's the scoop: September 17 – October 12, 2018, with an opening on Thursday, September 20. You'll be hearing a lot more about it once we get through the summer... but I've already started putting together work for the show, and couldn't resist sharing a little something out here.

Most of the work in the show is inspired by "dreams, prophecies, and visions" – and this piece in particular is inspired by the Oak of the Golden Dream, the site of California's first discovery of gold – in 1842, right here in Santa Clarita. (Take that, James Marshall!) Francisco Lopez and two friends were herding cattle on his niece’s ranch and took a midday nap in the shade of an oak tree. Lopez dreamed he was floating on a pool of gold; when he awoke he stuck his knife into the ground, unearthing some wild onions, and found chunks of gold stuck amidst the roots.

I love the twisty, winding trunks of the oak trees out here, and how lost you can get underneath the spreading branches. This one, incidentally, is California Historical Landmark No. 168.

The comics I cut up for "In My Dreams" include some Justice Society of America (with the original Sandman, Wesley Dodds) and Neil Gaiman’s 1990s Sandman comic which had a very different take on the character.

Parting the Sea of Reeds... Under the Mighty Redwoods

The "dynamic duo" under the Redwoods

We're back from our "paper midrash" weekend in the woods with Peninsula Temple Sholom – praying, studying, and cutting paper. It was lovely being brought in as artist-and-rabbi-in-residence for PTS, and we're grateful for the opportunity to share our world with them. Bonus: they also had Cantor Rosalie Boxt as an artist-in-residence for the weekend (an incredible team at PTS put this incredible weekend together)!

Friday night after services we shared our presentation on "Pop Culture Torah and Jewish Fan Fiction" (also known as "Intro to Midrash"), with a focus on the weekend's Torah portion, Beshallach – which includes Shirat HaYam, the Song of the Sea from which the "Mi Chamocha" prayer comes.  Rabbi Shawna shared SO MUCH great midrash, including a text that delved into the many meanings of a particular sentence that started with the word "then." Seriously – "then." And a team-up between Spider-Man and Moses. (We have a lot of fun.)

Exodus/Shemot 15:1 starts with: "Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord..."

Saturday morning we led a meditative tefillah with emphasis on the prayers that make up the Amidah section, using large projected images of my "Paper Tefillah" series to encourage deeper thinking about personal meaning in the words.

And the rest of the day was set aside for workshops and learning. Cantor Boxt led sessons on music, while Rabbi Shawna and I led papercutting workshops, all inspired by Shirat HaYam.

Hard at work, cutting up comics

Rabbi Shawna discussing the mechanics of papercutting

It never ceases to amaze me how a room full of people can all start with the same story and find so many different meanings and foci for their artistic expression – some very deep thinking about the words of the portion and how we can connect to them.

Cut! Tape! Cut! Tape! (Repeat until done.)

You think the tables look messy? You should see the floor.

From explorations of the shape of the parted sea, to the emotions of the Hebrews fleeing to freedom, to contemplation of the nature of Divine presence and protection.

Finished work by workshop participant: Parting the Sea

Finished work by workshop participant: Egyptian in Peril

Finished work by workshop participant: The Parted Sea as Heart

We ended the weekend on Sunday with a particularly special experience: a "teach-back" session in which the workshop artists explained their work to the rest of the community, walking them through the midrashim they studied and the inspirations for their work.

We wish to thank Rabbi Dan, Rabbi Molly, Rabbi Lisa and the PTS community for bringing us up to "Happy Valley" for this year's retreat; we enjoyed praying and studying and creating with you.

(Interested in bringing us out to *your* community? Visit www.PaperMidrash.com for details.)

Beware My Power (Asher)

Another day, another executive order – and this time it's a rehashing of the anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim travel ban. (Yeah, we're getting political out here.)

So to mark the day and to make it clear where I stand – WITH THE TIRED, HUDDLED MASSES – I'm posting another of the papercuts in my new Twelve Tribes series: "Beware My Power (Asher)."

This one is made of cut-up comics featuring the new Green Lantern, Simon Baz – a Lebanese-American, and the first Muslim member of the Green Lantern Corps. Like many of his brethren he is misunderstood, wrongly accused, and generally a target of suspicion and mistrust. And yet he continues to wield his ring to fight for all humanity.

The tribe of Asher is traditionally represented by an olive tree – this one has a strong twisty trunk with Baz's forearm tattoo, the Arabic word for "courage."

I'll be premiering this series (and MORE) at Brave New World Comics (in Newhall, in the Santa Clarita Valley of Southern California) the evening of Saturday, April 8 — details will be posted here once I've got more to share, but please save the date for now.

"Tree of Life" at Children's Hospital Los Angeles

I am so excited to finally be sharing this with you – my new "Tree of Life," commissioned by Children's Hospital Los Angeles for their new chapel! It's 24" x 36" and it's chock-full – the most super heroes I've even put into one papercut.

I had the chance to see it in its new home for the first time today as the space was officially opened, and it looks fantastic. The whole space does – it's officially named the Thomas and Dorothy Leavey Foundation Interfaith Center, 2,400 square feet of "non-denominational indoor and outdoor space will serve as a place of emotional and spiritual respite for CHLA patients." (You can read more about it here.)

It is such an honor to have been asked to create a new papercut for this wonderful space – to be a part of CHLA's goals of "compassionate patient care, leading-edge education of the caregivers of tomorrow and innovative research efforts that impact children at our hospital and around the world." I hope that my "Tree of Life" inspires all who see it – patients, families, and the CHLA professionals – to be strong and to have hope.

"What do you see?" Kid Flash, Squirrel Girl, Green Lantern, Power Pack...

As regular readers of this blog probably know, we Jews call the Torah (known to others as the Bible or the Old Testament) the "tree of Life," and we say that all those who support it are happy. This tree represents our traditions of knowledge and learning, of hope and healing, of happiness and life.

This large and bountiful tree is filled with many different fruits, and features shapes of leaves from trees found throughout Los Angeles: oak, birch, madrone, and willow. Other references to Los Angeles abound.

It is filled with cut-up comics featuring super heroes — individuals who have devoted themselves to helping those who need it — as well as doctors and nurses tending to the sick. (Look for Doctor Strange, Doctor Fate, the Night Nurse, and many others.) Since it's for a Jewish prayer space, it's filled with Jewish heroes (like Kitty Pryde, Batwoman, and Ragman). The fruits are filled with younger super heroes, still learning to be their best selves. (Look for the young hero teams Power Pack, Teen Titans, the Legion of Super-Heroes, and more.) You'll find Bruce Wayne visiting a sick friend in the hospital, Beast Boy getting a checkup, Wiz Kid in his wheelchair working with the Young Avengers... and so much more.

"Tree of Life" is filled with doctors, nurses, and young heroes who strive to be strong and persevere!

It is my hope that all those who look at the tree will find within it their favorite super hero, and see themselves reflected in it as well.


This "Tree of Life" is also a tree of healing. As it happens, the shortest prayer in the Torah is one of healing — five words, eleven letters — when Moses calls upon God in Numbers/Bamidbar 12:13 to heal his sister, Miriam, with the words, “El Na R’fa Na La” – “God, Please, Heal Her Now.” This prayer is found in the trunk, along with words from the “Mi Shebeirach” healing prayer and multiple references to the Etz Chaim (the Tree of Life).

The trunk includes an LA skyline, texts on the "tree of life," and Moses' plaintive prayer to God for healing.

 So – how many super heroes? You wanna know? Here's the list (those with asterisks are young heroes, found in the fruits of the tree):

Aquaman (Arthur Curry)
Arsenic (Gertrude Yorkes)*
Atom (Ray Palmer)
Batgirl (Barbara Gordon)
Batman (Bruce Wayne)
Batwoman (Katherine Kane)
Beast Boy (Garfield Logan)*
Black Canary (Dinah Lance)
Braniac 2
Captain America (Steve Rogers)
Cyborg (Vic Stone)
Cyclops (Scott Summers)
Daredevil (Matt Murdock)
Dazzler (Alison Blaire)
Dr. Fate
Dr. Lamour*
Dr. Mid-Nite
Dr. Strange (Stephen Strange)
Energizer (Katie Power)*
Franklin Richards*
Gamora
Green Arrow (Oliver Queen)
Green Lantern (Hal Jordan)
Green Lantern (John Stewart)
Hawkeye (Clint Barton)
Hawkman
The Hulk (Bruce Banner)
The Human Torch (Johnny Storm)
Iceman (Bobby Drake)
The Invisible Woman (Sue Storm)
Iron Man (Tony Stark)
Jubilee*
Kid Flash (Wally West)
Lightning Lass*
Lucy in the Sky (Karolina Dean)*
Magik (Illyana Rasputin)
Marvel Girl/Phoenix (Jean Grey)
Ms. Marvel (Carol Danvers)
Nightcrawler
Night Nurse
Power PackRagman (Rory Regan)
Robin (Dick Grayson)*
Robin (Stephanie Brown)*
Rocket Raccoon
Shadowcat (Kitty Pryde)*
She-Hulk (Jen Walters)
Spider-Man (Peter Parker)
Squirrel Girl (Doreen Green)*
Starfire*
Sunspot (Roberto da Costa)*
Supergirl (Kara Zor-El)
Superman (Clark Kent)
The Thing (Ben Grimm)
Thor
Valeria Richards
Vickie Grant*
Vision
Wiz Kid (Taki Matsuya)
Wolverine
Wonder Girl (Cassie Sandsmark)*
Wonder Girl (Donna Troy)
Wonder Woman (Diana Prince)
Zero-G (Alex Power)*
The Eleventh Doctor

And you know I always make a list of the comics I use in my pieces – this is a LONG list:

Adventure Comics #507 (Jan 2010)
Adventure Comics Presents Dial H for Hero
#481 (May 1981)
All Star Western #3 (Jan 2012)
Aquaman #35 (Dec 2014)
Avengers #7 (Jan 2011)
Batgirl Special #1 (1988)
Batman #500 (Oct 1993)
Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight
#4 (Feb 1990)
Batwoman #3 (Jan 2012)
Claws #3 (Dec 2006)
Convergence: Green Lantern Corps #2 (Jul 2015)
Daredevil #29 (Sep 2013), #294 (Jul 1991)
Doctor Fate #31 (Aug 1991)
Doctor Strange #65 (Jun 1984)
Doctor Who FCBD (2015)
Green Lantern #41 (Aug 2015), #108 (Sep 1978)
Green Lantern: Mosaic #1 (Jun 1992)
Green Lantern: New Guardians #35 (Dec 2014)
Elektra #1 (Jun 2014)
Excalibur #1 (Oct 1988)
Fantastic Four #156 (Mar 1974)
FF #23 (Dec 2012)
Incredible Hulk #28 (Jul 2001)
Infinity Inc. #3 (Jan 2008)
Justice #1 (Oct 2005), #12 (Aug 2007)
Justice League of America #75 (Nov 1969)
Legion ’91 #34 (Dec 1991)
Legion of Super-Heroes #16 (Mar 2013)
Magik #1 (Dec 1983), #4 (Mar 1984)
The New Mutants #87 (Mar 1990)
The New Teen Titans #1 (Aug 1984)
Night Nurse #1 (Jul 2015)
Power Pack #1 (Aug 1984), #12 (Jul 1985),
#21 (Apr 1986), #19 (Feb 1986),
#25 (Aug 1986)
Ragman #1 (Aug 1993)
Runaways #16 (Jul 2006), #19 (Oct 2006),
#7 (Oct 2005)
S.H.I.E.L.D. #4 (May 2015)
Showcase ’93 #7 (Jul 1993)
Siege: Loki #1 (Jun 2010)
Starman #23 (Jun 1990)
Superboy #18 (May 2013), #8 (Aug 2011), Annual #1 (Mar 2013), #5 (May 2011)
Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes #27 (Apr 2007)
Superman: Peace on Earth (Jan 1999)
Swamp Thing #22 (Feb 2006)
Tales of the Green Lantern Corps #3 (Jul 1981)
Tales of the Teen Titans #57 (Sep 1985)
Tales of the Thing #1 (May 2005)
Teen Titans #4 (Dec 2003), #23.2 (Nov 2013), #13 (Sep 2004)
The Thing #2 (Feb 2006)
Thor #616 (Dec 2010), #621 (May 2011),
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #7 (Sep 2015)
Wonder Girl #1 (Nov 2007)
X-Men: First Class #4 (Feb 2007)
X-Static #21 (Jun 2004)
X-Terminators #3 (Dec 1988)

Oregon Jewish Life

There's a nice write-up in the January 2016 issue of Oregon Jewish Life about my appearance with William Shatner in Portland last month. Here's an excerpt:

Jewish-themed papercuts generally don’t conjure up visions of Star Trek. References to Jews beautifying commandments with this colorful, baroque folk art date to 1345. Symbols and inscriptions include biblical passages, Stars of David and the Zodiac – complete with fantastic animals. Captain Kirk and his Starship Enterprise are unlikely candidates. Unless, of course, you’re Isaac Brynjegard-Bialik.

Read the whole thing here.

There's No Place Like Camp

Honorees Jim Heeger and Daryl Messinger being presented with "There's No Place Like Camp" by URJ Camp Newman Development and Alumni Director Tracy Klapow

This past weekend URJ Camp Newman held a celebration to honor Jim Heeger and Daryl Messinger for their contributions to and support of the camp over the years – the theme of the evening was "There's No Place Like Camp."

This fabulous husband-and-wife duo have been involved with the URJ camps for many years – serving on the board, developing the long-term vision, and so much more.

I was so pleased the camp asked me to make a papercut for Jim and Daryl, since I'm at Camp Newman every summer and am proud to call it my second home — and I'm glad to share with you a photo of the presentation (above) and a cleaner image of the papercut (below), which I call "There's No Place Like Camp."

Click the leaf to see it bigger!

The papercut is based on the leaf shape used in another event element, but I've filled out the structure with a modified version of the Camp Newman logo. And within? Cut-up comics, of course, including an issue of Lumberjanes. You'll also see a bit of a map (to stress the importance of location), some camp photos, and a little bit of Hebrew text – words from "Mah Tovu," a blessing bestowed upon the Israelites for the beauty of their tents.

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.

More pix from Temple Beth Hillel workshops

This past weekend we had the last of three sessions in my papercutting workshops at Temple Beth Hillel and I took some more photos to share with you.

A big thank-you to Rabbi Eleanor Steinman for capturing this image
of me working with a student!

The students in my class really gave it their all – some finishing up their mizrach projects, and nearly all of them completing their midrash projects as well.

Papercutting in a workshop means you get feedback and support from the other students.

I took a bunch photos of the students hard at work; here are some of my favorites.

Yes – there were other southpaws in the workshop. Hooray for lefties!

I love seeing work coming together – the process is nearly sculptural.

The day was overcast, and the room a bit dimmer than usual...
but one enterprising student brought a mini lantern!

And of course, each student posed with their finished work. Some didn't quite get all the way done, but they'll be finishing up later – and you can already see how great those are going to be as well.

Barbara's mizrach was gloriously colorful.

Barrie built a house with the Hebrew letter bet and a tree branching through it.

Cindy made great headway with her midrash-inspired landscape;
just a bit more background to incorporate and she'll be dine!

Esther made a papercut inspired by Bamidbar, the second book in the Torah.
("Bamidbar" means "in the desert.)

Fran's "Miriam's Well" is so expressive, really capturing the shape of water blasting out.

You've got to see the image she used in the background of the water... stunning!

Leslie had a very complex design for her mizrach – so much time cutting,
not quite enough to finish backing it – but look at that pomegranate!

Margaret worked on three pieces in the workshop, including this "Tree of Life"
which she is backing with cut-out pieces from magazines she brought in.

Samantha missed the first session, so she had 2/3 the time of most students –
but still nearly finished this gorgeous tree!

Stuart (the lefty) was working on interpreting the hidden meanings of Hebrew letters.

His painstaking layering of colors behind the letters was inspiring (and time-consuming)!

Toby made a piece exploring "the endless cycle" of the Hebrew letter samech.