Fine Arts Program at the Pozez JCC, Fairfax
The Pozez JCC Fine Arts Program supports and encourages the development of Jewish arts and artists. The program is also committed to establishing and strengthening the relationship between the Northern Virginia community and Israel by integrating Israeli arts into its program.
The J's dedication to the arts has garnered a reputation that is well-respected amongst artists, art enthusiasts, buyers, and sellers.
Over the years, the J's Bodzin Art Gallery exhibitions have attracted talented artists who work in a wide variety of media including painting, photography, jewelry, crafts and new media.
In the Bodzin Art Gallery
Lecha Dodi Slane Meadow
Acrylic on canvas Acrylic on canvas
2021 2020
Ray of Tikvah, Through Letters and Landscapes brings to life the magical artwork of Alyse Radenovic, whose breathtaking depictions of ancient Jewish prayers and songs fill the canvas with Hebrew letters like stars in the sky. The artist’s captivating abstract interpretations of pastoral and urban settings feature bold strokes and a kaleidoscope of colors that take viewers on a journey from Virginia to distant lands.
Inspired by passages from the Torah and Tanakh, Radenovic makes religious text come alive with playful Hebrew script that appears to dance the hora while suspended midair, tugging at the imagination and heartstrings.
Drawing on inspiration from Chasidic Judaism, Radenovic is guided by the wisdom of the late Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who once said that the primary talent of an artist is to gaze into the “innerness” of a subject and “perceive its essence, and to be able to convey this” in a painting. “This is how an artist can serve his [or her] Creator."
The Ray of Tikvah exhibition offers a ray of hope through emotive, passionate artistic expression with the power to inspire, heal and bring light to darkness. Alyse Radenovic is a Jewish American fine artist who’s been painting since 2007. Her work is regularly featured at regional art shows and exhibits, and in 2020, she was profiled in the Washington Jewish Week for her contributions as a landscape painter. She lives in Alexandria, Virginia with her family.
Tree of Life
Group Exhibition
January 11 – March 4, 2022
Calling all artists! Submit your artwork by December 17, 2021
Tree of Life is an upcoming group exhibition in celebration of Tu B'Shevat and in partnership with the Plant NOVA Trees Campaign.
Submission Guidelines
- Submit up to three (3) original artworks for consideration
- 2D artworks must have wired backs. 3D artworks may not be larger than 2’W/2’H/1’D to be displayed in glass showcases.
- Art must be appropriate for young children (no violence, illicit substances, graphic nudity, etc.)
- The submission fee must be paid by the deadline (December 17, 2021)
- Each item selected for the exhibit must be delivered with identification noting: artist’s name, title, medium, price/not for sale (NFS) and be identical to the information provided in this submission.
- Your participation includes permission for the J and Plant NOVA Trees to photograph the exhibition for publicity or educational purposes.
- The J takes a 30% commission of art sales. Artists receive a check for 70% of sales two weeks after the exhibit concludes.
- You will be responsible for removing and packing your artwork at the conclusion of the exhibition.
Dates and Deadlines
- Application Deadline: December 17, 2021
- Artwork delivery date: Monday, January 10, 2022 - between 7:30-11:30am
- Artwork pickup date: Sunday, March 6, 2022 - between 10am and 12pm - Please bring wrapping materials at pick up.
Apply online at https://thej.force.com/s/registration?searchkeyword=tree%20of%20life
Questions? Contact Sarah Berry, curator, at Sarah.Berry@theJ.org.
JAMMARTT, which stands for Jews and Muslims Making Art Together, is a group of Jews and Muslims who got together in 2008 with the purpose of creating art and in so doing to get to know and understand each other’s beliefs and values. In the process and without expecting it, they became friends. At first, they focused on learning about “the other” and soon discovered there were more commonalties than differences.
Through the years, most of the founding artists remained and JAMMARTT welcomed new artists into the fold. Together they plan new themes expressing a unique Jewish/Muslim artist perspective. Recently moved by the outlandish acceptability of public discourse that encouraged intolerance, prejudice, and hate in our nation, JAMMARTT group focused on creating artwork representing the ideals of freedom, justice and equality that brought us (or our ancestors) to this country. Every person in the group is either an immigrant or a child or grandchild of immigrants. Each artist has unique family “exodus” and arrival stories.
We Got Here from There: Immigration Stories represents the journeys of this group of artists, and also conveys the universal tale of each person who picked up and left all that was familiar to create a better life for themselves, their families, and future generations. Above all, this collective art exhibition is meant to show the powerful convergence of different faiths and cultures through friendship, community, creativity, and hope.
Michelle Hahm is an illustrator, painter, and writer splitting her time between Greater Washington and Korea. For this collection of watercolor portraits, Hahm relied more on a psychological interpretation rather than a strictly photorealistic vision. Hahm embarked on this illustrative project of Holocaust survivor portraits and took time to travel to hear in-person testimonies and create artwork based upon the experience.
Hahm uses traditional and modern techniques to act as a conduit in allowing Holocaust testimonies to be more reachable in the ever-changing media terrain, as well as to increase greater interest in a younger generation and a non-Jewish audience.
Bodzin Art Gallery
Pozez JCC of Northern Virginia
8900 Little River Turnpike
Fairfax, VA 22031
Hours:
Monday-Thursday, 6:30am-8pm
Friday, 6:30am-6pm
Closed on Saturday
Sunday, 8am-4pm
All visitors must present a J membership card or photo ID to enter
