Impression III (Concert), 1911
Oil on canvas, 30 1/2 x 39 3/8 in. (77.5 x 100 cm)
Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus, Munich
© 2003 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris '; $scene_1 = 'After hearing his first performance of Arnold Schoenberg\'s music on January 2, 1911, Kandinsky painted this work, in which he abandoned perspective and moved toward abstraction. He also wrote to the composer "...You have realized what I...have so greatly longed for in music...[and] exactly what I am trying to find in my paintings..." Thus began a stimulating dialogue between the two artists. See paintings by Schoenberg, Kandinsky, and their circle in current exhibition Schoenberg, Kandinsky, and the Blue Rider, on view through February 12, 2004. Audio guide includes performances of seminal Schoenberg compositions. '; ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// $caption_2 = ' Arnold Schoenberg (Austrian, 1874-1951)
Sketch for Three Piano Pieces, op. 11 (1909), detail
Arnold Schoenberg Center, Vienna '; $scene_2 = ' Wrote Schoenberg to Kandinsky: "I am sure that our work has much in common—and indeed in the most important respects: In what you call the \'unlogical\' and I call the \'elimination of the conscious will in art.\'... Art belongs to the unconscious! One must express oneself! Express oneself directly! "

Hear Alex Ross, The New Yorker music critic, and Esa-Pekka Salonen, composer, conductor, and Music Director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, discuss their far-ranging interests—from Schoenberg\'s romanticism to their shared passion for the rock band Radiohead. Thursday, November 20, 6:30 pm. '; ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// $caption_3 = ' Arnold Schoenberg (Austrian, 1874-1951)
Erwartung (Expectation) (Stage setting), n.d.
Watercolor on paper
Arnold Schoenberg Center, Vienna '; $scene_3 = 'Schoenberg\'s first opera Erwartung (Expectancy), written in 1909, directly addressed Freud\'s theories of fragmentation and the realm of the unconscious. The labyrinthine woods in Schoenberg\'s stage settings do not reflect the empirical world but the protagonist\'s state of psychological disarray.

Find this and other rarely seen paintings by Schoenberg, major works by Kandinsky and the Blue Rider group, and a CD of Schoenberg\'s historic 1911 concert in the exhibition catalog, available in the online shop. '; ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// $caption_4 = ' Dara Birnbaum (American, born 1946)
Erwartung/Expectancy, 1995/2001
Room Installation with plexiglass panels, DVD projection, and sound
Courtesy of the Artist and Marian Goodman Gallery
Photograph by David Heald '; $scene_4 = 'Contemporary artist Dara Birnbaum creates a multi-media work based upon Arnold Schoenberg\'s 1909 opera, Erwartung (Expectancy). The opera probes one woman\'s condition as she moves through varying stages of isolation, alienation and uncertainty, in search of a lost lover. Birnbaum reinterprets the drama in her 1995/2001 installation. The resulting work asks the viewer to contemplate if the contemporary woman is still trapped between finding self-identity and achieving a sense of completion through a male counterpart. See the installation, on the 2nd floor through January 4. '; ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// $caption_7 = ' Gabriele Münter (German, 1877-1962)
Jawlensky and Werefkin, 1908-09
Oil on cardboard, 12 7/8 x 17 1/2 in. (32.7 x 44.5 cm)
Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus, Munich
© 2003 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn '; $scene_7 = ' Gabriele Münter was Kandinsky\'s companion and part of his artistic circle. Influenced by Gauguin and the Fauves, in 1908 the artists developed a new Expressionist approach characterized by bold colors and flat outlined forms. This period marks their critical break into abstraction. Münter herself recalled: "After a short period of agony, I took a great leap forward, from copying nature — in a more or less Impressionist style — to feeling the content of things — abstracting — conveying an extract."

Take a leap! Influence your community. Support the Jewish Museum. '; ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// $caption_5 = ' Torah Ark from Adath Yeshurun Synagogue
Abraham Shulkin (American, b. Russia, 1852-1918)
Sioux City, Iowa, 1899
Pinewood: hand-carved, openwork, stained, and painted
10 ft. 5 in. x 8 ft. x 30 in. (305 x 244 x 76 cm)
Gift of the Jewish Federation of Sioux City
JM 48-56 '; $scene_5 = 'A Russian Jewish immigrant and amateur woodcarver made this Torah ark in Sioux City, Iowa in 1899. Like many immigrants, he brought with him his traditional cultural influences, including artistic styles. This ark shows a close connection to eastern European wooden Torah arks and papercuts. The eagle on the top of the ark is a symbol of the Czar, as well as the American bald eagle.

What inspires people to immigrate to a new land? What might they bring with them to adapt to their new home? Elementary and Middle School Educators will enjoy the workshop Coming to America - Teaching Immigration January 29, 2004. '; ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// $caption_6 = ' Mezuzah
Adam Tihany
Silverplate, 5 1/2 in. high
2003
Centennial Commission, The Jewish Museum '; $scene_6 = ' A mezuzah is a parchment scroll affixed on the right-hand doorpost of a Jewish home. In order to enclose the scroll and fit on the narrow doorframe, the Ashkenazi mezuzah case is typically a tall, narrow container.

In celebration of The Museum\'s Centennial in 2004, a collection of ceremonial objects has been commissioned by designer Adam Tihany. This piece, hand-crafted by Christofle in fine silverplate, is the first of the collection, and is available online in Celebrations. '; ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// $caption_8 = ' Richard Tucker as Des Grieux in Manon Lescaut
Photo: Louis Mélancon
Courtesy of Opera News
'; $scene_8 = ' Metropolitan Opera superstars Robert Merrill, Jan Peerce, and Richard Tucker shifted roles to appeal to a broad and diverse audience, including television personas shaped by managers, producers, audience, and the singers themselves. As in the case of today\'s pop stars, television blurred the private and public lives of Merrill, Peerce, and Tucker, leaving audiences with a complex and occasionally distorted view of the Bel Canto(r).

The newly-opened Goodkind Media Center includes an exhibition space dedicated to video and new media. Its first program is Bel Canto(r): Jewish Superstars of Song, a 30-minute video. '; ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// ?>