26 Mar
Arts & Culture, Culture, Religion

A Scanner Messianically

R. Justin Stewart may not be the first artist you’d expect to be behind a work called “Distorting (a messiah project, 13c).” The self-described atheist became interested in the idea of the Messiah after his Jewish wife suggested that he might investigate Judaism for topics to explore in his art. “Distorting,” on display at Brooklyn’s Invisible Dog Art Center through May 5, is an installation made of fleece, rope and plastic, and is dotted with QR codes that visitors can scan for more information. We spoke with Stewart about the installation, the Messiah and its surprising connection to the modern courtship dance. (The following is an edited transcript.) Can you explain the concept behind the piece? It’s a 3D bubble diagram of one segment of the history of the idea of the Messiah within Judaism. I’ve done...

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09 Aug
Uncategorized

Israel Boycotts, Now Organic

By Aarian Marshall Something’s afoot in the Park Slope Food Co-op. If you are not a local of bourgeois Brooklyn, if the New York Times Metro Section isn’t quite your thing, you may have never heard of the co-op. It began in 1973 in Brooklyn’s Park Slope, founded by a “group of committed neighbors who wanted to make healthy, affordable food available to everyone who wanted it” (according to its website). Today, the co-op is famous for its organic emphasis, low prices, huge membership (roughly 15,000 New Yorkers belong), and rules so strict that one blogger likened the establishment to “a Soviet-style re-education camp.”  Co-op members must work for their groceries—one 2 ¾ hour shift every two weeks. This kind of participatory grocery shopping creates a community that cares deeply about food—and that has the weekly newsletter and...

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12 May
Arts & Culture, Culture

Not Your Bubbe's Punk Rock: An Interview with the Shondes

by Amanda Walgrove The Shondes is a Brooklyn-based indie band that has garnered attention for their gritty Riot Grrrl rock sound, Jewish influences and political messages. Comprised of Louisa Solomon, Temim Fruchter, Elijah Olberman, and Fureigh, the band has released two albums since their formation in 2006: self-released debut The Red Sea (2008) and My Dear One (2010) with Fanatic Records. The band recently made a celebrated appearance at the South by Southwest Music Festival in Austin, Texas, and has a new record in the works. I asked them a few questions about the religious roots of their music, their partnership with progressive Jewish organizations, and a general affinity for bubbe accents. Using a Yiddish word meaning "disgrace" or "shame" for a band name ties you to Jewish roots and yet separates you from religious orthodoxy. Can...

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12 May
Arts & Culture, Culture

Not Your Bubbe’s Punk Rock: An Interview with the Shondes

by Amanda Walgrove The Shondes is a Brooklyn-based indie band that has garnered attention for their gritty Riot Grrrl rock sound, Jewish influences and political messages. Comprised of Louisa Solomon, Temim Fruchter, Elijah Olberman, and Fureigh, the band has released two albums since their formation in 2006: self-released debut The Red Sea (2008) and My Dear One (2010) with Fanatic Records. The band recently made a celebrated appearance at the South by Southwest Music Festival in Austin, Texas, and has a new record in the works. I asked them a few questions about the religious roots of their music, their partnership with progressive Jewish organizations, and a general affinity for bubbe accents. Using a Yiddish word meaning "disgrace" or "shame" for a band name ties you to Jewish roots and yet separates you from religious orthodoxy. Can...

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22 Oct
Culture, Latest, Religion

Hasidim, Hipsters, and the New Crown Heights

by Symi Rom-Rymer Hasidim and Hipsters can’t be friends, so says conventional wisdom.  But maybe they can eat together.  At least that’s what Danny Branover, principal owner of Basil Pizza and Wine bar in Crown Heights is hoping. Crown Heights, the Brooklyn neighborhood perhaps most infamously known for the 1991 riots that irrupted between the neighborhood's Hasidic and black communities, is home to a mix of ethnic and religious groups including immigrants from the Caribbean, Lubavitcher Jews, and African-Americans.  In recent years, an influx of young, liberal professionals have moved in adding yet another cultural and social imprint on the neighborhood. According to a New York Times piece about Basil by Frank Bruni, former food critic for the Times, the idea for the restaurant started when Branover, himself a member of the Lubavitch movement, moved from Jerusalem to...

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30 Oct
Latest

McCain's Supporters In Brooklyn

A group of journalism graduate students at Columbia University put together this interesting study of how Brooklyn is politically divided ("Bleeding Red for McCain") on their original online news publication, Brooklyn Ink. Using public records of campaign donations, they put together a map that visually reflects which areas of Brooklyn are red and which are blue. Following the map is a series of vignettes about the particular areas in support of McCain. The introduction follows: Venture to the southeastern point of Brooklyn, below Avenue H, and you will find a Brooklyn where Syrian Jews dine on kibbeh in Gravesend, and where Muslims heed the call to prayer in Bensonhurst. This is a Brooklyn where the manicured lawns and Mercedeses on Ocean Parkway or in Dyker Heights shout one kind of American dream, and where the Cyrillic...

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