Jewish holidays and their cultural significance

¶ … Paintings

The Shabbat painting

Illustrated in a naive style devoid of perspective, with vibrant simplistic colors, Meyers seems to wish to convey the scene precisely as he viewed it when a child. The commentator notes that there is a symmetry to the room, and she may be right in that the shabbat table is centerpiece as though the whole atmosphere orbits around and reflects from the shabbat which indeed it does, Shabbos defining and transforming the entire day.

What is interesting is that the children are sitting around the table as though ready to eat while the mother seems to be blessing the candle. Most pictures of the era, and, indeed, customary in many contemporary homes is that the children stand by the side whilst the mother lights, and that this is done quite a while before actually eating the meal. This, at least, was the custom too in Apt particularly amongst Chassidim (and Apt was prominently Chassidic; most of Meyer's men are dressed in that distinctive style). Lighting the candle whilst eating is a distinctly America / Western custom which leads me to infer that Meyer may be transposing some of his current practices to memories of his past.

The father's absence is also interesting. It may be that he may have emigrated.

Further observations include the maturity of the children form the baby up; the freshness of the colors -- as though the house were freshly scrubbed which it likely was; the cri that is in the kitchen (I wonder whether it always was?); the existence of kitchen integrated with dining room -- the furnishing and layout of the room indicating that, whilst no wealthy home, this was not poor either and was likely lower middle class. Most interesting is the clock pointing to the wrong time.

2. The Purim Jesters: The commentator correctly describes this as a Purim scene with the village jesters going to 'prominent' wealthy homes', 'becoming tipsy', and soliciting funds for particular charities. Selection of those homes was particularly due to the reason that these recipients would be most likely the one who would be forthcoming and generous. Whilst the jesters selected homes, what must be also fairly pointed out is that the shtetels and Jewish communities tried to involve all in their Purim festivities and particularly singled out those less fortunate than themselves to provide delicacies and money too so that they too could enjoy Purim. Certain synagogues and local institutions also presented Purim plays as they do today.

Myer's picture depicts the recipient in so-called Lithuanian garb (as opposed to Hassidic; this impression is reinforced by the paintings on the wall); he was likely a rabbi or prominent person of the community. Meyer may have wished to accentuate this impression by accentuating the wrinkles on his forehead (denoting listening). Notice the people standing outside peeking through the window. Purim jests are as popular today as they were then.

The scene (aside from, although not necessarily, the floor being uncarpeted) is no different from that of many others occurring today.

3. Simchat Torah: I do not find the scene of Simchat Torah any different than that occurring in any orthodox -- or for that manner any Jewish synagogue of today almost all along the spectrum. The red apples that, as the commentator pointed out, you hardly see, are symbolic of the apples normally eaten by Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) to allegorically mark a hoped-for sweetness of the coming year. Many children's flags still have them today. The tallit, contrary to the commentator's explanation is symbolic of Jacob's blessing to his grandchildren Ephraim and Menasha before his death "may the angel bless you..' The children of the synagogue gather under one huge tallit or several prayer shawls that are stretched over their heads and candy (symbolizing sweetness) is rained down on the prayer shawl whilst a blessing is said by the congregation to the effect that may angels protect the children. The blessing may have possessed superstitious connotations in Eastern Europe (although that again depends on the specific geographic area and historical era). Nowadays, the blessing is meant in a generic sense and the whole done as a way of celebrating the end of the Torah reading for that year, the end of the year and the beginning of a new one. The entire scene therefore has a celebratory atmosphere and even though some individuals do get tipsy, most don't.

The picture is painted in such a way that the brightness of the room casts a glow over all else. The dancing participants are placed in the center of the room with the two chandeliers directly overhead bathing them with a clean glow. Unlike most of his other pictures, we do have a sense of perspective here with the intention, seemingly to place the worshippers in the middle of the image. The entire is bathed in the pure white glow of a new year perhaps to reflect and bring out the intensity and naivety of their rejoicing. Even the somber colors of the men -- black and brown -- are compelled to retreat into insignificance by the all-encompassing glow of the light.

4. The hunchback's wedding: Although not strictly part of the Jewish holiday, but included in that category, is the picture of the hunchback. Whilst the artist insists that he recalls the event happening, and whist the event may have occurred, one wonders at the publicity of the scene. Imagine today, any Chassidic or fervently orthodox wedding with a bride obviously pregnant and about to give birth as was the case here. Such an event -- if happening at all - would undoubtedly be held in the privacy of the parents' (or some other reluctant person's) house with only the required witnesses present. Modernism has caused reduction of superstition and certain standards to be relaxed in the most radical Chassidic circles. Nonetheless, any pregnant persons would be persona none gratis in those circles just as much today as then, and extremes would be taken to hush up the affair. It seems to me unlikely that in this exponentially more fervent, Chassidic town of Apt, living before modernized influences, such an event would never have occured before the crowd that it does. Both bride and groom would have been excommunicated. Groom may have been compelled to marry the bride but the grandeur of the wedding brings into question the reality of this scene. Perhaps, this existed in the artist's imagination as a young boy, and he is depicting what he imagined.

The chair is incongruous to the rest of the room; this may be as Meyer willed it in order to indicate that it has an anecdote of its own. Interesting are the two candles on the table. Why two? This was not Shabbos. Why candles if you have the kerosene lantern on a shelf? Candles (such as the Shabbat candles) are not generally lit by the chuppa today.