Grants awarded to 20 artists exploring Jewish culture

Since 2002, the EAJC has distributed over 120 grants (ranging from 3,000 to 10,000 Euros) to artists in more than 20 European countries.

By RACHEL IRWIN
jewishcultart8888 (photo credit: )
jewishcultart8888
(photo credit: )
Judy Price uses video, photography, sound and archival footage to probe questions of loss, memory and identity in her art installation "Blind Spot." David Grinberg's play, "The Messiah," chronicles 20th century Jewish history and will be presented at the Estudis de Teatre in Barcelona. Alexander Balanescu based his mixed media installation "Second Breath" on sculptor Maurice Blik's childhood experiences during the Holocaust. Performance poet Leah Thorn uses poetry and storytelling to delve into the multiple layers of comtemporary Jewish identity in her project "See, Safe,". These artists are among 20 who received grants from The European Association for Jewish Culture (EAJC), an organization that strives, according to its mission statement, to "foster and support artistic creativity and promote access to Jewish culture in Europe." Since 2002, the EAJC has distributed over 120 grants (ranging from 3,000 to 10,000 Euros) to artists in more than 20 European countries. In addition to the grant awards, the EAJC has announced it will support and collaborate with the All About Jewish Theater website (www.jewish-theatre.com), a forum that works to "promote and enhance Jewish Theater and Performance Arts worldwide." The EAJC and Moti Sendak, the website's founder and editor, hope to expand and constantly update the online directory of artists, producers, plays, articles and other research materials. "The EAJC award is enabling me to develop my work in a whole new direction," explains performance poet Leah Thorn, "particularly as I'll be working with a theater director to explore new ways of using my voice and my body. It has also bought me time to research and write the piece, and to really focus on what it is I want to say. Often grants in this country are targeted for artists from minority ethnic groups, and Jews don't really figure in that category, so it meant a lot to me to be able to apply openly as a Jewish artist for funding that would help me create a Jewish piece."