Jewish paper cutting

Jewish paper cutting is a traditional form of

History

Origins

The origin of Jewish paper cutting is unclear. Ashkenazi Jews in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries practiced this type of art. However, Jewish paper cuts can be traced to Jewish communities in Syria, Iraq, and North Africa, and the similarity in the cutting techniques (using a knife) between East European Jews and Chinese paper cutters, may indicate that the origin goes back even further. Some contend that Ashkenazi paper-cutting may date to the 14th century, though its popularity reached a zenith in the 18th and 19th centuries.

The first mention of Jewish paper cutting can be found in the treatise "The fight of the pen and the scissors” by a 14th-century rabbi, Shem Tov ben Isaac ben Ardutiel (1290-1369), who describes how he decided to cut letters in paper when his ink became frozen during a harsh winter. To students of Christian Spanish literary history, Rabbi Shem Tov is known as Santob de Carrion de los Condes, the courtly

It was popular among Jews both in eastern and western Europe as well as in Turkey, Morocco, Syria, Bangladesh, Israel, and North America.[3]

In North Africa and the Middle East paper cuts were called a "Menorah", because one or more

Jewish paper cutting began disappearing in the first half of the twentieth century, mainly because of the rapid assimilation trends and the waning of many traditional practices, and was practiced only by older people who remembered this art form from their youth. Many paper cuts collections that had been preserved were destroyed during World War II and the Holocaust and relatively few remain in public or private collections.

Resurgence

Since the late twentieth century, Jewish paper cuts have again become a popular art form in both

Artist Oren Loloi writes that the art of Jewish papercutting's resurgence is due in large part to the efforts of Polish-Jewish anthropologist and ethnologist Giza Frankel (see below).[5] Frankel's 1983 book, The Art of the Jewish Papercut (Migzerot neyar: omanut Yehudit amamit), was produced after 50 years of painstaking research.

Today, Jewish papercut art has grown in popularity beyond ritual items to art and expressions of Jewish faith, not only in Israel but worldwide. Loloi contends that the resurgence in papercutting's popularity is in part due to its contemporary near-ubiquity as part of the ketubah (marriage contract), which is a contemporary site of hiddur mitzvah, the Jewish principle of honouring the Divine by beautifying ritual objects. Contemporary papercutting art may also be seen in amulets like hamsas, blessings for the home, mizrahim, and other art pieces, usually as a wall plaque.

Artists

Giza Frankel

In Israel papercutting was reactivated by Giza Frankel, a Polish-born ethnographer.^[6] Frankel's most significant publications on paper cutting are Wycinanka żydowska w Polsce and Art of the Jewishpaper-cut.^[7] Giza Frankel brought knowledge of Polish Jewish paper cuts with her when she emigrated to Israel in 1950.^[8]

According to Frankel, the most famous Polish papercutters are Marta Gołąb and Monika Krajewska.

Marta Gołąb

Marta Gołąb is both a graphic artist and papercutter.

Monika Krajewska

Monika Krajewska's interests was focus on symbols related both to Jewish papercut and sepulchral art, according to Wycinanka żydowska. She is a member of The Guild of American Papercuters.^[10]

Yehudit and Joseph Shadur

Yehudit Shadur was a Jewish paper cutting artist.^[11][12]

Yehudit Shadur and her husband Joseph Shadur wrote a history of the last three centuries of Jewish paper cutting called Traditional Jewish Papercuts: An Inner World of Art and Symbol. They won a 1994 Jewish National Book Council prize for this book.^[13][14][15] In addition to this book, the Shadurs wrote an additional book on Jewish papercuts, the catalog on Yehudit Shadur's 1995 exhibit at the Haaretz Museum in Ramat Aviv, Israel, and several articles on the art of Jewish papercutting.

Tsirl Waletzky

Tsirl Waletzky (née Tsirl Grobla) was considered to be a major contemporary paper cutting artist in American Yiddish culture.^[16] Waletzky's papercuts differed from "traditional forms in that they are free flowing and less bound to structure and symmetry."^[17]

Kim Phillips

Kim Phillips is a modern Jewish paper cut artist whose work pushes the limits of interpretation of Jewish texts and themes without reference to traditional symmetrical forms. Her work has been exhibited in Israel and in the United States.

Oren Loloi

Oren Loloi (Papercuts By Oren), is a modern Jewish paper cut artist working in Israel.^[18] His work belongs to a new aesthetic that bridges the gap between Jewish tradition and the modern resurgence of paper cutting worldwide. His work mainly focuses on ketubot. He has also been commissioned by synagogues in New York and Virginia for large scale works.^[19]

Naftaly Mazaky

Mazaky is a contemporary Israeli artist, inspired by the works of Yemenite Jews who designed and crafted silver judaica and jewelry. He is a "Yemenite Papercutter-Jeweler".^[20] Mazaky's papercuttings have been on exhibit at the Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies, the Museum of Jewish Art in Jerusalem, and at the Yemenite Heritage Centers in Rehovot and Netanya. His papercuttings showcase excerpts from Biblical sources intertwined with graphic scenes of nature and culture.^[21][22]

Uses

Types

Depending on their purpose, shape and connection with specific religious and non-religious events, paper cuts are of different types.^{[23]: 40–57}

A Mizrah (hebr. The East) is a plaque hung on the east wall of private houses to show the direction of Jerusalem. A shivis’i (hebr. always) is similar to a mizrah, but it hangs on the east side of a synagogue. Its name is connected with a sentence from the Bible: 'Shivis'i adonai l'negdi tamid' ('I have set the LORD always before me').^[23]: 4 Shivis’i in the form of paper cuts rather than some more durable material were only used in poor synagogues.

There were also various paper cuts made for special, religious celebrations. Shevuoslekh ("little Shavuots") and royzelekh (rosettes) decorated windows for Shavuot. Royzelekh are circle-shaped paper cuts, while Shevuoslekh are rectangular. They were often made by pupils in elementary Jewish religious schools (Cheders). They were sometimes decorated with motifs unconnected to religion, such as soldiers or riders.

Flags for Simchat-Torah were also made by cheder pupils. Created from colourful paper, each paper cut symbolized one of the twelve tribes of Israel. The other side of the paper showed an image of Torah with moving doors cut in paper. Paper cuts made for Sukkot were formed into lanterns, chains and birds, hung in Sukkahs.

Paper cuts often decorated a plaque with a prayer called Ushpizin, made for Sukkot. Paper cuts were also created for Purim, often containing the Hebrew sentence: ”Mishenekhnas adar marbin b’simcha’ (‘We should rejoice because (the month of) Adar begins') and cut into an image of a bottle and glasses, a symbol of rejoicing.^[23]: 11

Papercutting also has connections with other forms of Jewish tradition. For example, Ketubahs (marriage agreements) were sometimes prepared in the form of paper cut, or decorated with paper cutting elements. Also cut into paper, memorial plaques were made to commemorate the names of ancestors’ names and dates of birth and death. Lanterns with papercut walls were placed in synagogues for anniversaries of great men's death.^{[23]: 10–11} Amulets like a Hamsa often showed an image of a palm with an eye on it.

Characteristics

Features

Paper cuts traditionally were created with the use of shoemaker's knife. It is likely that most artists were men, though in later years, schoolgirls (and boys) made little rosettes (called royzelekh or reyzelekh in

Symbols

Every element of Jewish paper cut has its own symbolism. Some are typical of general Jewish culture, others are peculiar to the art of paper cutting. The most important symbols are placed along the

The main symbols are usually a

• The image of the Torah symbolizes God's law, Judaism, Israel. The Star of David symbolizes Judaism and Israel
• The Menorah symbolizes Israel, Judaism, and
  Shekinah’ (Hebrew for God's presence); the other flames are shown as leaning towards the main flame. The bottom of the menorah is often shown as a complicated ornament symbolizing infinity

• Lions, a biblical symbol of the Tribe of Judah, are associated with strength, bravery, power^[25]
• Deer symbolize the Tribe of Naphtali^{[23]: 6 [26]}
• Birds
  are associated with the human soul
• Fish are usually connected with fertility
• A squirrel biting a nut symbolizes the effort put into reading the Torah
• The Four Animals (a leopard, an eagle, a gazelle, and a lion) are connected with a sentence from Pirkei Avot: “Be strong as the leopard, swift as the eagle, fleet as the gazelle, and brave as the lion to do the will of your Father in Heaven”^[27]
• A
  snake eating its own tail symbolizes infinity^[3]

• Signs of the Zodiac
  showed the sequence of Jewish celebrations during the year
• Often positioned above the Torah or a Menorah, the crown is a symbol of God, the Torah, the Kingdom of Israel or the Priesthood[23]^: 5
• Columns and other architectonic elements are associated with the Temple in Jerusalem
• Hands with joined thumbs are a gesture of blessing
• A jug filled with water and a bowl symbolize the Tribe of Levi, blessing or the Priesthood

Methodology

The images are created by cutting a design into a folded piece of paper. When the paper is unfolded, the symmetrical design is revealed.^[28] The paper can be cut using either scissors or a craft knife.

Gallery

• 
  Shavuot papercut
  early 20th century
  Yeshiva University Museum
• 
  Shavuot papercut
  undated
  Poland
  Yeshiva University Museum
• 
  Shavuot papercut
  David Elias Krieger
  ca. 1900
  Yeshiva University Museum

Works or publications

Books

• Błachowski, Aleksander (1986). Polska wycinanka ludowa / Polish Folk Cut-Out (in Polish). Toruń: Muzeum Etnograficzne w Toruniu. pp. 12–14.
  OCLC 247937563
  .
• Frankel, Giza פרנקל, גיזה; Harʼel-Ḥoshen, Śarah הראל שרה (1983). מגזרות נייר - אמנות יהודית עממית Migzerot neyar: Omanut Yehudit ʻamamit The Art of the Jewish Paper-Cut (in Hebrew). Ramat-Gan מסדה: Masadah.
  OCLC 27227163.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
  )
• Fränklowa, Giza (1929). Wycinanka żydowska w Polsce / Papierschnitte bei den Juden in Polen (in Polish). Lwów: Nakł. Towarzystwa Ludoznawczego.
  OCLC 802161157
  .
• Shadur, Joseph; Shadur, Yehudit (1994). Jewish Papercuts: A History and Guide. Jerusalem: Judah L. Magnes Museum (JLMM).
  OCLC 924825453
  .
• Shadur, Yehudit (1978). Paper-Cuts by Yehudit Shadur: March 12-May 7, 1978, Magnes Museum. Berkeley, CA: Magnes Museum.
  OCLC 44416264
  .
• Shadur, Joseph; Shadur, Yehudit; Sperber, Daniel (Forward); Gross, William L. (Preface) (2002). Traditional Jewish Papercuts: An Inner World of Art and Symbol. Hanover, NH: University Press of New England.
  OCLC 47625265
  .
• Shadur (שדור, יהודית), Yehudit; מוזיאון ארץ־ישראל / Muzeʼon Erets-Yiśraʼel / Eretz Israel Museum (1996). "Catalog of an exhibition held at Muzeʼon Erets Yiśraʼel as part of "Jerusalem 3000" celebration, winter 1995/96". ירושלים לדור ודור : מגזרות נייר / Yerushalayim le-dor ṿa-dor: Mi-gizrot neyar / Jerusalem from Generation to Generation (in Hebrew and English). Tel Aviv, Israel: מוזיאון ארץ־ישראל / Muzeʼon Erets-Yiśraʼel / Eretz Israel Museum.
  OCLC 38217079
  .
• Waletzky, Tsirl; Liebenbaum, Elaine (photographs) (6 August 2008). The Magic of Tsirl Waletzky.
• Waletzky, Tsirl; Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale; Judaica Museum (1988). Contemporary Paper Cuts (January 10-June 26, 1988). New York: Judaica Museum.
  OCLC 42057827
  .
• Waletzky, Tsirl; Yeshiva University Museum (1977). Papercuts: A Contemporary Interpretation. "The Story of Ruth" exhibition. New York: Yeshiva University Museum.
  OCLC 2909376
  .

• Mizrah by Israel Dov Rosenbaum]] Podkamen, Ukraine, 1877 (date of inscription). Paint, ink, and pencil on cut-out paper. 30 1/4 x 20 3/4 in. (76.8 x 52.7 cm). The Jewish Museum, New York.
• Mizrah/Shiviti by Mordecai Reicher (American, b. Ukraine, 1865-1927). Brooklyn, New York, United States, 1921/22. Ink and watercolor on cut-out paper. 19 3/4 x 15 3/4 in. (50.2 x 40 cm). The Jewish Museum, New York.
• Memorial Calendar, Shiviti, and Mizrah by Hayyim Benjamin Blum, Mordecai Abraham. Poland, 19th century. Paint, pencil, and collage on cut-out paper. 21 7/8 x 21 3/4 in. (55.6 x 55.2 cm). The Jewish Museum, New York.

See also

• Papercutting
• Chinese paper cutting
• Papel picado
• Scherenschnitte
• Vytynanky (Wycinanki)
• Silhouette

Notes and references

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Jewish paper cutting.

• Jewish Papercutting at My Jewish Learning
• Paper Cuts at The YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe