Objects of Veneration

This project is an appreciation of objects, often made for cultic or religious purposes by anonymous makers from all parts of the earth over the past centuries and millennia. Each object is identified by source and provenance as possible.

artist's statement

Ancient Mask I, gouache on handmade paper, 30 x 20 in. (from 6000 year old facial ossuary – burial urn – found in the Galilee) 2012

Ancient Mask II, gouache on handmade paper, 30 x 20 in. (from 6000 year old facial ossuary – burial urn – found in the Galilee) 2012

Ancient Mask III, gouache on handmade paper, 30 x 20 in. (from 6000 year old facial ossuary – burial urn – found in the Galilee) 2012

“I Went to the Animal Fair” mixed media with gouache on handmade paper, 32 x 22 in. (from ceramic zodiac figures from the Northern Wei Dynasty, 6^th Century in the Seattle Asian Museum) 2012

“Santo Angel” mixed media with gouache, charcoal, and chalk on handmade paper, 32 x 22 in. (from handcarved Santo Angel made in the 19^th Century in Cebu, Philippines, from the artist's collection) 2012

“Crucifix” gouache on handmade paper, 32 x 22 in. (17^th Century handcarved crucifix from Guatamala, collection of Yonnah Ben Levy) 2013

“Memsaab” gouache on handmade paper, 32 x 22 in. (from head of a puppet from India, early 20^th century, from the artist's collection) 2013

Terracotta Figure, gouache on handmade paper, 31 x 21 in. (from miniature, 5 in. sculpture by Yonnah Ben Levy) 2012

One Kid (Had Gadya) (gouache on handmade paper, 28 x 20 in.) 2013

“Insomnia” (Nail Fetish, Congo, 20^th Century, collection of David Cassera) 2013

Netsuke (Kabuki musician, Japan, from the artist's collection) 2013

Relic (Central America, mid 20^th Century, from collection of Jack Gunter) 2013

Hathor, gouache on handmade paper, 32 x 22 in. 2014

Stele, mixed media with encaustic on handmade paper, 31 x 21 in. 2014

Heaven and Earth (from 3000 year old terracotta Philistine temple model) in the collection of Museum of Philistine Culture, oil pastels and crayon on handmade paper, 26 x 20 (private collection) 2015

Three Faces of Eve, mixed media with gouache and charcoal on handmade paper, 21 x 31 in. (from cult figurines at the Bible Lands Museum, Jerusalem, 2500 BCE) 2013

Scarab (Middle Bronze Age) mixed media with gouache and charcoal on Fabriano paper, 22 x 30 in. 2012

Riders, gouache on handmade paper, 22 x 32 (from Persian miniature in artist's collection) 2013

Rattle, gouache on handmade paper, 22 x 32 (NW Coast Native American in artist's collection) 2013

Ode to a Grecian Urn, mixed media on handmade paper, 22 x 32, 2014

Siren, mixed media with nail polish on handmade paper, 22 x 32, 2014

Eskimo Effigies, oil pastels on handmade paper, 21 x 27 in. 2015

Ancestor Effigy, (China, 17^th Century) gouache and enamel on handmade paper, 22 x 32 in. 2016

Shard I, mixed media with oil pastels, crayon, and charcoal 20 x 27 in. on handmade paper, 2017

African Masks, mixed media with oil pastels on handmade paper, 19x 27 in. 2016

“The Dead (Elysium or Bust)” (late Roman Effigies) mixed media with oil pastels on handmade paper, 20 x 27 in. 2017

Herd Boy, oil pastels on handmade paper, 21 x 31 in., 2017

Shard III, oil pastels on handmade paper, 21 x 31 in. 2017

White Horse, oil pastels, gouache, and gesso on handmade paper, 21 x 31 in. 2017

Shard II, mixed media with oil pastels, crayon, and charcoal on handmade paper, 2017

Santo Virgin, oil pastels on handmade paper, 30 x 20 in. 2017

Petroglyphs, mixed media on handmade paper, 21 x 31 in. 2016

Now Available in book form from Dekel Press

The author and artist began collecting small carvings as a child in the 1960's. Only later did he begin to research the religious and cultural meaning behind many of these objects. He began doing a series of paintings of these as well as objects in other collections. The objects, all by anonymous artists, span six thousand years. They are described and put into context as they migrate from their original cultic and religious purpose to their presence in modern day collections. Finally, so as not to be accused of cultural appropriation (though the intent is cultural appreciation and apprehension) the author addresses his own culture which traditionally disdained the veneration of objects but venerates words. Thus an essay called, "The Talmud, a Brief Travelogue" is included, which discusses history, the Bible, and religion in a contemporary and entertaining way.

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