Jewish Museum (Manhattan)

The Jewish Museum is an art museum located at 1109 Fifth Avenue in the beautiful Felix M. Warburg House on the famous Museum Mile in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York City. It is home to a huge collection of about 30,000 objects, including special items used in religious traditions, beautiful paintings, and photos. This makes it one of the biggest museums in the world focused on Jewish culture.

The museum started in 1904 when Judge Mayer Sulzberger gave some important ceremonial objects to the Jewish Theological Seminary. More items were added when people sent their treasures from Poland to keep them safe during World War II. The museum moved into the Warburg family mansion, which was given to them in 1944 by Frieda Warburg, and opened its doors to visitors in 1947. The grand building was designed by C.P.H. Gilbert in a special style called châteauesque and was made bigger in 1959 and 1963.

Over the years, the Jewish Museum has become a very important place for learning about modern and contemporary art in the United States. It was the first museum to show solo exhibitions of famous artists like Helen Frankenthaler, Kenneth Noland, and Ad Reinhardt. It also helped introduce Jasper Johns to many people and was the first to show a big collection of works by Robert Rauschenberg. One of its most famous shows was Primary Structures in 1966, which helped start the Minimalist movement in sculpture.

History

See also: History of the Jews in New York City

The Jewish Museum started with a gift of special Jewish items given to the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in 1904. These items were moved in 1931 and later expanded with more gifts. In 1939, Poland sent about 350 special objects to New York to keep them safe.

In 1944, the family of Felix Warburg gave their mansion to the Seminary for the museum. The museum opened to the public in 1947. It began by showing Jewish historical items but later started showing modern art as well. In the 1960s, the museum showed works by famous artists and even helped organize a big art show in Venice.

During the 1970s and 1980s, the museum focused more on Jewish culture and history. It showed famous art works and also expanded its building. By the 1990s, the museum was growing and adding more space.

Today, the museum offers many programs for families and adults. It has changed some of its old rules and continues to show new and exciting art from around the world. In recent years, it has added new spaces for learning and displaying its collections.

Building

Main article: Felix M. Warburg House

The Felix M. Warburg House was built between 1906 and 1908 in a special style called François I, which looks like old French castles. It was designed by an architect named C.P.H. Gilbert for a wealthy family named the Warburgs. This style uses limestone and has special roof shapes and decorations to show off wealth.

Later, the house became the Jewish Museum. An architect named Kevin Roche added new spaces in 1993. He made sure the new parts matched the old style, especially on the front of the building and inside the auditorium. He also added modern technology to help visitors learn and enjoy the museum better.

Collections

The Jewish Museum has nearly 30,000 objects, including paintings, sculptures, archaeological artifacts, and Jewish ceremonial art. These items help preserve Jewish history and culture. Artists such as James Tissot, Marc Chagall, George Segal, Eleanor Antin, and Deborah Kass are part of the museum’s collection. It is the largest collection of Jewish art and related items outside of museums in Israel. One of its exhibitions, called Scenes from the Collection, shows artworks from ancient times to today. The museum’s objects come from all over the world where Jewish people have lived.

Public programs

The Jewish Museum offers many fun and educational activities for visitors. These include talks, art workshops, performances, and special tours for people with disabilities. One special program allows visitors to explore the museum with a guide who describes the art and lets them touch special objects.

The museum also has events for families and children on Sundays. These activities help create new museum-goers and include gallery tours, free art projects, and storybook readings. The programs are designed to be interesting to everyone, no matter their background, and cover topics like archaeology and art. The museum sometimes works with other museums nearby on Museum Mile to create even more exciting events.

Management

Joan Rosenbaum led the Jewish Museum for many years. During her time, the museum grew to have 26,000 objects, and its budget increased from $1 million to $15 million. She focused on Jewish culture and showed works by modern Jewish artists like Chaïm Soutine and Maira Kalman. In 2013, Claudia Gould became the new director of the museum.

In 2015, Kelly Taxter was named one of the top 25 female curators in the world by Artnet. In 2012, Claudia Gould hired Jens Hoffmann as Deputy Director. However, Hoffmann was later suspended and fired after several serious allegations were made against him.

Highlights

• Man Ray, Self-Portrait with Camera, 1930
• Andy Warhol, Ten Portraits of Jews of the 20th Century, 1980
• Eva Hesse, Untitled, 1963–64
• Richard Avedon, Jacob Israel Avedon portraits, 1969–73
• Adolph Gottlieb, Return of the Mariner, 1946
• Deborah Kass, Double Red Yentl, Split, from My Elvis series, 1993
• Jan Pogorzelski, Hanukkah menorah, 1893
• James Tissot, Adam and Eve Driven From Paradise, c. 1896–1902
• Alfred Stieglitz, The Steerage, 1907
• Reuven Rubin, Goldfish Vendor, 1928
• Marc Chagall, Old Man with Beard, c. 1931
• Johann Adam Boller Hanukkah menorah, Frankfurt am Main (Germany), 1706–32
• Torah Ark from Adath Yeshurun Synagogue, Abraham Shulkin, 1899

Selected art exhibitions

The Jewish Museum in Manhattan has hosted many important art shows over the years. Some of these include:

• Primary Structures (1966)
• The Circle of Montparnasse: Jewish Artists in Paris, 1905–1945 (1985)
• The Dreyfus Affair: Art, Truth, and Justice (1987)
• Painting a Place in America: Jewish Artists in New York, 1900–1945 (1991)
• Too Jewish?: Challenging Traditional Identities (1996)
• Assignment: Rescue, The Story of Varian Fry and the Emergency Rescue Committee (1997)
• An Expressionist in Paris: The Paintings of Chaïm Soutine (1998)
• Voice, Image, Gesture: Selections from The Jewish Museum's Collection, 1945–2000 (2001)
• Mirroring Evil: Nazi Imagery/Recent Art (2002)
• New York: Capital of Photography (2002)
• Modigliani Beyond the Myth (2004)
• Eva Hesse: Sculpture (2006)
• Action/Abstraction: Pollock, de Kooning, and American Art, 1940–1976 (2008)
• Shifting the Gaze: Painting and Feminism (2010–2011)
• Harry Houdini: Art and Magic (2010–2011)
• Maira Kalman: Various Illuminations (of a Crazy World) (2011)
• Collecting Matisse and Modern Masters: The Cone sisters of Baltimore (2011)
• The Radical Camera: New York's Photo League, 1936–1951 (2012)
• The Snowy Day and the Art of Ezra Jack Keats (2012)
• Kehinde Wiley / The World Stage: Israel (2012)
• Édouard Vuillard: A Painter and His Muses, 1890–1940 (2012)
• "Crossing Borders: Manuscripts from the Bodleian Library" (September 14, 2012 – February 3, 2013)
• "Sharon Lockhart Noa Eshkol" (November 2, 2012 – March 24, 2013)
• Revolution of the Eye: Modern Art and the Birth of American Television (May 1 to September 27, 2015)
• "Pierre Chareau: Modern Architecture and Design" (November 4, 2016 – March 24, 2017)
• Chagall, Lissitzky, Malevich: The Russian Avant-Garde in Vitebsk, 1918–1922 (September 14, 2018 – January 6, 2019)
• "The Sassoons" Exhibit from March 3 to August 13, 2023. Review in The New York Times. Review in The Wall Street Journal.