-Kultur-
I picked up this little clay Hasid paperweight in a tourist market in Krakow. He has a diamond in his hand. Reactions to him vary, from astonishment to rage.
Rabbi Duvid Bergman of the Radziner Shul in Boro Park gives spectacular shiurim in a concise and eloquent Poylish Yiddish. For all of our Yiddishists out there – s’iz nisht keyn treyf-posl.
Juan Goytisolo, arguably Spain’s great living novelist, released a radical revision of his text Juan the Landless. In this new revision-translation, we meet a Spaniard tortured by a vicarious guilt for the crimes of his country – the persecution of Muslims, Jews, and homosexuals. A man with no land, no history… ain’t nothing like a little Occidental guilt.
A recent digital exhibition of Nomi Talisman’s project META/DATA is up on the website of The Judah L. Magnes Museum. Quirky.
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that doll is unreal! are those moles on the nose and chin?
—Justin · February 19th, 2010 at 12:13 pm
I think that those blemishes occurred on his trip back to the US -when he was having a smoke from his pipe and some flying ashes burned his nose.
—eli aka gyp the blud. · February 19th, 2010 at 12:35 pm
well it would have been even more awesome if they were gross hairy moles or warts.
—Justin · February 19th, 2010 at 1:19 pm
You may find this piece about zydkis (the name of the figurines) interesting. www.myjewishlearning.com/hot_topics/ht/zydki.shtml
—Meredith · February 19th, 2010 at 5:00 pm
I have a series of these dolls. My “favorite” is the Hasid, with a big nose, holding a piggy bank in one hand, and a coin in the other.
But far more shocking than the doll itself, is that they are sold at scores of places, including the airport AND Jewish tourist venues.
—Meir Eynaim · February 20th, 2010 at 5:33 pm
Kind of interesting to compare that phenomenon with the native kitsch you find in the southwest.
—em · February 20th, 2010 at 6:41 pm
Having traveled to China quite a few times- let me point out that the bookstores have several books that teach “how to make money like a Jew.”
They are intended to be instruction manuals that hold Jews in high esteem and not at all anti-Semitic.
These dolls are simply a disgrace. And they are sold everywhere in the “Jewish Quarter” of Krakow.
Today the Jewish Quarter has very few Jews. Anyone know why?
Yes, because the Nazis gassed them all.
It does have the Alef restaurant, the Shalom restaurant, Mama’s Bagels, the Zion Hotel,etc. But these are owned and staffed by non-Jews.
The many Klezmer groups are made up on non-Jewish musicians.
Without tourists, the shul in Krakow would often not have a Minyan.
Some Polish shuls have broads of directors made up of non-Jews.
There is a growing interest in Judaism by non-Jews. And there are some young Jews (or decedents of Jews) coming out of the woodwork.
But by and large, the stories of a Jewish revival are GREATLY exaggerated.
There, indeed, are many Jewish organizations. But that is because everyone is trying to get their hands on Holocaust money as properties are being returned by the government.
—Meir Eynaim · February 21st, 2010 at 6:35 am