UNART - Bais Chana Art Book

43

AND THE SURVEY SAYS HOW DID YOU OVERCOME THE DIFFICULTY
OF WORKING IN A GROUP?

■■ Music and some self talk.
■■ Play music.
■■ The fact that everyone around me was overcoming it. That we weren’t defined by

our art. Just expressed through it.

■■ I came back late at night and made art then.
■■ There will always be someone better or more talented than you and that’s why there

will always be someone who will be in awe of what you do, someone who isn’t as
good as you. Focus on the image in your head, bring it to life, and someone will love
it and think it’s the most amazing thing they’ve ever seen. Or, love what you do and
paint for yourself and be proud that you did so.

Think Again, 2014
Aviva Buschman-Perkins

Paper Collage

45

ART, ITSELF, BREAKS DOWN THE BARRIER
BETWEEN RUCHNIUS (SPIRITUALITY) AND
GASHMIUS (PHYSICALITY). AND IT CREATES
AN ACHDUS (ONENESS) THERE.

- Rabbi Manis Friedman

Colorful Nature Biome, 2017
Jennifer Harrel

Acrylic on Canvas

47

AND THE SURVEY SAYS HOW WAS DOING ART IN A GROUP SETTING
BENEFICIAL?

■■ It taught me authenticity. Taught me how to be the truest form of myself. To create

something mine. As I was around so many that were so different and doing such
different pieces then mine.

■■ I got to feed off of all the creative energies in the room and it provided me with

a lot of inspiration for my own art.

■■ The mood was very happy, light-hearted and fun. Everyone was exchanging ideas,

sharing stories and helping out when they were asked to, or even out of their own
goodwill. I absolutely love working in a group when it comes to art.

■■ It relaxed me and made the environment more easy-going because you could

always stop and go chat with someone and look around for inspiration for your
own artwork.

■■ Being around friends who I trusted and who supported me and my artistic skills

created a warm environment where I felt safe to express myself.

Drippy Droppy Deep Blues, 2017
Mushky Denberg
Ceramic

49

Sunrise, 2015
Kimberly Ali
Dye on Silk

51

We must recognize the value of both dreams
and art as fertile places to incubate profound
improvements and shifts - not only in personal
lives, but also in society. When individuals are
inspired, strengthened and mobilized - all of
humanity benefits.

Aarah Aizman

Platter, 2014
Sarah Kimmelman

Ceramic

53



55

THE PEOPLE WHO HAD THEM

Nina Pfenger

My life started out Am I the real me? Am I someone else?
As a spark from the creator Or maybe pretending to be me?
A breath of life My mother would give advice, but was it true?
A soul within me Could I trust it?
After 9 months I was on this earth
A small baby, an infant, a human being 10 years later maybe I'll have my answers
Maybe I won't, but I won't be worried
A few years later I Soon I'll be married, having kids
Began walking and talking Helping my daughter
Asking and answering, With the same questions I once had
Thinking and believing
I was growing 18 years later she'll have to find out
I was becoming me If she is those answers
And I will have to see if mine are still mine
In the next few years I'd find myself 10 years later I'll see my daughter grow into
Knowing what I liked and disliked Who she’s supposed to be
Choosing things that I believed were me I'll see her tell her daughter
The same answers I told her

Give it a few more years But eventually the questions won't matter
And all that would change And the answers won't either
Why? High school Because it's not the questions and answers
Fitting in, trying to be myself That made the difference
But also everyone else It's the people who had them
Am I me? Am I her? Am I you?
Questions flooding my brain Possibilities, 2015
Aarah Aizman
Ink on Paper

57

Eye of the Color Storm, 2015
Zeissa Spadone

Acrylic on Canvas

59

Love is a pursuit.
Love is an excitement.
Love is a disturbance.

Paradox, 2015
Tonia Lazaroff
Mixed Media

61

SECRETS

Anonymous

It hurt.
The pain
Was overwhelming

I moved along without him.

I picked myself up
To start
Again
I told myself this is
Life

He had become
Another person
Not one
I can be proud of.

Yet, I don’t want to let go.
I think that may have been
Love.

I moved along without him.

Untitled, 2015
Anonymous

Mixed Media

63

TO MY FRIEND

Shana Shemtov

You were born for a need, Another year in your journey of life
Not just by mistake. Has passed by.
The world was lacking your fire, Your future is uncertain,
Lacking your life. It’s true. True. Just like the rest of us.
Growing up on jungle gyms
Of severed ties and shattered dreams. Yet you thirst for the truth more than anyone
Climbing on mountains Who carried a canteen
Of mistrust and marriages Full of water since infancy.
And mental instability. Don’t ever, EVER, sell yourself short.
Stumbling through sisterhood and school Not to yourself, or anyone else.
And suffering souls. Show the world your fire everyday
But then the warrior within you And know that
Broke through. You have an ever present fan club.
I believe in you and remember:
The girl with the red and the black ‫הכל יהי׳ בסדר‬
And the blonde
Showed the world what could be done Impressions, 2014
To those mountains. Aviva Buschman-Perkins
Your special soul shines through and builds
Strong foundations for the future. Ceramic and Bead
Foundations for a beautiful life ahead.
No, I don’t think you’re crazy.
In fact, quite the opposite.

65

AND THE SURVEY SAYS DOES YOUR ABILITY TO EXPRESS YOURSELF
DEPEND ON TRUSTING OTHERS?

■■ There’s always gonna be that fear of maybe what I say won’t be accepted, but a

lot of times, people can be surprisingly accepting. And still even then, they usually
don’t understand the motives behind your art. That’s personal to you, and you can
choose whether to share it or not. That’s something special about art.

■■ I feel like the need to create art is greater for me than the need to be accepted, or

for my art to be validated.

■■ I had to learn to trust others with my opinions and insecurities in order to properly

express my art.

■■ Art and trust are two very different things. The only person I have to trust while

creating something is myself. I only have to trust others to trust me that I know what
I’m doing.

■■ There was a lot of opening up, of genuine sharing of emotion on a scale I hadn’t really

been exposed to up until then. Uncamp was an environment that appreciated when
you were genuine, no one was interested in what fake demeanor you had for the day.

Shabbos Queen, 2017
Esty Grifkin

Pastel on Paper

67

We have to try to remove our expectations and
just get busy and create and see the beauty
in what happens. If we can practice this lesson
with art, we can eventually apply it to our lives.

Aarah Aizman

Keys to Happiness, 2017
Shoshana Howard
Ceramic

69

AND THE SURVEY SAYS PLEASE DESCRIBE WHAT HELPS YOU FEEL
SAFE DOING ART.

■■ When there is physical space between me and another.
■■ Being able to express yourself without interruptions or boundaries.
■■ Knowing that the piece of art is mostly for me.
■■ Feeling free from judgments and other opinions, being told that art has

no definitions,
and being reassured that every mistake is not a mistake, but meant to be.

■■ Judgement free zone at Uncamp.
■■ I know that, just like a fingerprint, my art is unique and cannot be replicated.

Everything I do will one day be traced back to me and mark me as the creator of
something special and beautiful. It will be something to remember and love me by.

■■ Being myself around others who are accepting of it.
■■ A happy and relaxed environment where everyone is encouraging others to do

their best.

Untitled, 2017
Esther Cohen
Collage on Form

71

Reflections, 2015
Zeissa Spadone
Acrylic on Canvas



ROOTED I can cease to exist in a moment
with nothing but a feeble stem
Anonymous To recall of my existence.

I envy the trees. But in the grand orchestration
They stand, tall, proud, and Of the cosmos
Beautiful. They needn’t assert I was told to be a dandelion.
Their worth. And so I am.
It is silently established. Roots. I may never survive the gusts of wind
I think all about the roots. With a firm resolve.
I see them where they come to But I will learn to ride them with
The surface Grace and elegance.
And I admire them admiring Some will want to capture me in a
The trees they support Painting or a photograph
With tenderness in their eyes. But I will just laugh
I imagine all the roots of all the trees At the foolishness of
Connecting beneath the surface. Calling survival - art.
A sight I am not privy to. Because it is better to be a tree
With roots that refuse to let go
And all the trees whether they produce In their unbounded love
Fragrant flowers or whether they haven’t I long for that nourishment,
Lived up to expectations And I crave that stability
Are loved with the kind of love And no one will try to convince
Worlds are created from. Me otherwise

I observe. I fancy myself a dandelion.
Blown so easily away to a million
Distant lands

Because a tree might complain I will never be a tree
About a lot I will cry beneath the moon
But never about the fact Each night
And wake with dew-stained cheeks
That it is a tree. Because I will never be a tree.
And though I may never give And where every tree brings other
An umbrella of shade Trees to formation
Nor a place to rest against Trees that will look
Nor a sweet fruit -
I will greet the weary traveler Just like mine in the Heavens
On her journey But today, today
And offer her some youthful solace I am not strong enough to
I will carry her dreams with me Fulfill my destiny.
In my thousand scattered pieces Today I am an insecure
And I will Small dandelion
Pray in love that they will be fulfilled Wishing it could blow upon itself
For I know the yearning of her heart Wishing it could wish 1,000 times
Long before she has To feel the warm embrace
Of sturdy Roots.
Whispered it unto me. And though they will not come
I will never be a tree From all the exasperated pleas
And yet, I will soar. I know at least that an
I will drop my seedlings Ethereal Someone hears me
And make trees As I remain intact upon the kiss
I will defy nature’s rules Of a gentle breeze.
And transcend its limits.

75

“If He thinks it’s a good idea, why am I crying?“ . . . Don’t ask G-d for a smaller burden, ask Him
for bigger shoulders.

Untitled, 2016
Naama Arous

Silk

77

AND THE SURVEY SAYS EXPLAIN IMPERFECTION, THE GOOD SIDE,
THE BAD SIDE, AND HOW YOU WRESTLE WITH IT.

■■ We are comfortable with others vulnerability, but we’re ashamed of our own. Learning

that let me let go a lot. Knowing it is ok. Imperfect is a sign of life.

■■ Imperfections is what makes us spontaneous and symbolizes that we are human, the bad

side is that it isn’t how we really wanted it.

■■ We are all imperfect . . . we are human. Yet, the imperfect are perfect in their flawed ways.

I strive for perfection only up until the point where I remind myself that imperfect is
beautiful as well.

■■ Imperfection is proof of us being human. It means we WILL fail time and again - but the

good news? We can always get back up and utilize that imperfection and learn from it.

■■ You just got to let go.
■■ I think imperfections are just the physical expression of something that happens in your

art that you weren’t expecting to happen. I suppose it could be taken negatively if you
wanted your art to go in one direction and it doesn’t but I also think that it gave me
the opportunity to explore different aspects of my imagination that I wasn’t so willing to
explore prior to making the “mistake.”

The Painting One Paints When One Has No Skill, 2016
Tiffy Slonimscyzk
Watercolor

79

Where there is a story there is life. And, in life we
have shadows. I don’t like the bad wrap shadows
get...as if the only good they have is their potential
to be converted into light. It’s not right. In essence,
shadows are advocates of light. They give us
hints - telling us where to find the light source. We
need to spend more time where light and shadows
mingle and translate the stories found there - to
bring more life to our work and world.

Aarah Aizman

Oasis, 2016
Shevy Meyers
Acrylic on Canvas

81

I’M TRYING I get my chin up, whisper to myself
“I am fine”
Chana Ginsburg And I go.
So maybe
Soar? Forget that. I am fine.
Sometimes I’m just trying And I am good
To get up and walk. Just trying to create a deeper me?
Walk with confidence Maybe I am doing an okay job.
Without needing to look around me I’m confused.
And just look at the path ahead I’m pushing.
My path. I’m trying.

Let me tell you about my path: Lakeside, 2017
I want to be Leia Resnick
Healthy;
Not size 0-1-2-3-4-5. Acrylic on Canvas
Healthy.
I want to be happy
I wanna laugh
Give me jokes
Make it real
Let me feel it inside

In control;
Know where you end
Where I begin
Where my mind ends
And my heart begins

83

AND THE SURVEY SAYS WHAT WAS YOUR BEST MISTAKE?

■■ When I was ready to throw something out and Aarah showed me how to

turn it back into the direction of art. How that itself was art. In its imperfection.

■■ It turned out different than I thought, but I liked it even better than how

I wanted it to turn out.

■■ A splash of paint fell and transformed my whole drawing into a better idea.
■■ My best mistake was a watercolor that became something more.
■■ All my art is mistakes.

Untitled, 2015
Tonia Lazaroff
Mixed Media

85

Love Something and Giving Box, 2017
Menucha Colish

Ceramic and Paper Collage on Form

87

See the art you’re staring at.
In other words, be a good listener.

Aarah Aizman

Free Ellie, 2015
Tori Siegel

Acrylic on Canvas

89

BROKEN PIECES

Tonia Lazaroff

In the beginning,
A ball of G-dly fire fell down the stairs
And shattered here. An intentional explosion,
G-d’s vessels splintered into soil.

But your soul was carried slowly through the worlds,
Cradled like a baby, swaddled in holiness,
Some dust may have settled through the trek,
Down, down, from the tip top of beginning,
You are the essence of wholeness in a world
Built of brokenness. In a world dotted
With peepholes into divinity, your soul
Is the unfiltered light through upstair’s crystal window,
Your body is the billowing curtain,
To blow and wrestle with,
To pull and sew with.

There is always too much fabric here,
Too much and not enough light.
It’s less about shining, more about being,
Saying, oh, I’m a window,
I’m pure, unfiltered light,
G-d did not have to throw me from a top story building,

He wanted me to be sitting in the kitchen of His home,
Cooking a meal, tearing when the onions are too sharp,
Picking up the shards of a calculated accident, a messy beginning,
With G-d, nothing is a beginning, nothing is the end,
Nothing righteous is closer to Him than your morning breath,
Your soul that He carried, ever so gently,
For so long through the worlds that maybe
The rhythm of His footsteps is more familiar
Than your cracking skin, your tired voice,
Your calloused trying.

Pick up the pieces;
A million little candles will light this world on fire.
A million little fingers can reshape these vessels
Into something golden and sturdy to offer.
We are walking back up the stairs.
Crawling, slow, healing, steady,
We peel off the layers we were given for this journey.
We shake off the dust, we rip off this curtain.
We glue back the broken, we champion wholeness,
We say: you are good, you are worthy,
You are G-dly, you are light.

Come, let us reawaken the light.

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