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Displays of Jewish ritual objects in public, non-Jewish settings by Jews are a comparatively recent phenomenon. So too is the establishment of Jewish museums. This volume explores the origins of the Jewish Museum of New York and its evolution from collecting and displaying Jewish ritual objects, to Jewish art, to exhibiting avant-garde art devoid of Jewish content, created by non-Jews. Established within a rabbinic seminary, the museum’s formation and development reflect changes in Jewish society over the twentieth century as it grappled with choices between religion and secularism, particularism and universalism, and ethnic pride and assimilation.
“…an important and timely read for all scholars, practitioners, and critics of Jewish museums.” • Religious Studies Review
“The Jewish Museum in New York is undoubtedly the premier Jewish museum in the United States… A scholar and an artist, Abt shows superbly the intricacies of creating the museum, the tensions and conflicts over definitions, the role of philanthropists, religious figures, curators, and scholars, and the impact of the site on the Museum Mile of New York. As such, this volume is engaging and important reading for all attracted to the world of museums.” Richard I. Cohen, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
“This is a cleanly written and well-organized history of the Jewish Museum in New York that clearly articulates how it came into being as well as that history’s significance for the larger field of (Jewish) museum studies. This is a book that anyone involved in Jewish museums or Jewish material culture will want to read. The book fills a real gap in the field.” • Laura Leibman, Princeton University
Jeffrey Abt is Professor Emeritus at Wayne State University. Prior to that he worked at the Wichita Art Museum; the Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago; and Chicago’s Smart Museum of Art. An artist and writer, his artwork is in several museum and corporate collections. His books include American Egyptologist: The Life of James Henry Breasted and the Creation of His Oriental Institute and Valuing Detroit's Art Museum: A History of Fiscal Abandonment and Rescue. He co-edited and is on the editorial board of the Museum History Journal.
- Museum Culture
- The Contours of Secularization
- Secularizing Sacred Objects
- Ritual Objects and Art
Chapter 1. Entering the Contact Zone
- From Ritual Objects to Cultural Artifacts
- Expositions, Subalterns, and the Public Sphere
- Placing Judaism on Display
Chapter 2. Seeding a Seminary Museum
- “Jewish Ecclesiastical Art”
- Judaica for a National Museum
- The Museum of Jewish Ceremonial and Historical Objects
- Finding an Audience
Chapter 3. A New Venue, a New Purpose
- Reimagining the Museum: Interfaith Dialogue
- Reimagining the Museum: Cultural History
- Reimagining the Museum: Modern Jewish Art
- Art’s Usefulness for Jews
- Abstraction, Renunciation, Faith
Chapter 4. Creating a Way and Space for Contemporary Art
- The Premise of Universality
- Reshaping the Museum
- The Art World’s 92nd Street Y, New School, and Commentary
- Inaugurating the List Addition
Chapter 5. The Avant-Garde or Judaica?
- The Nature of a Real Explosion
- Pursuing a Greater Balance
- The Museum, the Seminary, and Conservative Judaism
- Ethnography, History, or Art
Chapter 6. Secular Paths Through the Avant-Garde, the Lower East Side, and Ancient Israe
- Reaffirming the Avant-Garde
- Heritage Rather Than Religion
- The Lower East Side and Masada
- Victim of Confusion | An Institution Adrift
Chapter 7. The Jewish Jewish Museum
- The Soul Museum
- Pushing Boundaries: Ethical, Social, Financial
- Denouement
- Cultural History, Ethnicity, and Jewish Experience
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Endnotes
Bibliography
Index