| Details | In the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) in Boston are three compelling portraits of Jewish sitters. Although painted by different artists and in different contexts, "The Talmudist" by Jacob Binder, "Hannah" by Isidor Kaufmann, and "Jewish Man Reading" by Edouard Brandon share an often-neglected common trait: they were all made by Jewish artists who found success in wider, secular society through other subjects and genres. What drew these cosmopolitan, secular artists to deeply traditional Jewish sitters and scenes? How did depictions of Jewish life fit into their broader production? What do these works tell us about the journey of Jewish artists working in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries? Discover the answers to these questions and more with our guest, Simona Di Nepi, Charles and Lynn Schusterman Curator of Judaica, MFA Boston, as she traces the stories of these portraits and the artists who created them. Moderated by Kate Clarke Lemay, acting senior historian at the National Portrait Gallery, this program is part of the Greenberg Steinhauser Forum in American Portraiture. |
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