Although many Jewish contemporary artists have achieved recognition at the Jewish cultural scene, one such artist is Siona Benjamin, a young Jewish Indian artist whose new exhibition, “Finding Home,” was recently launched at the JCC of Manhattan. Her work (which is based on a Mughal art style) is full of brilliant, unique ideas and elements, and is described as having the “pop cultural and feminist elements of the contemporary day.”
Her references are derived from Hindu, Muslim, and Jewish traditions, but she always makes her work unique. Her studies at JTS included learning about midrash, and she’s had fun developing her theories. She has a wealth of skills that make her work rich with content; her paintings not only possess aesthetic value but are always politically charged, looking to challenge assumptions and promote cultural identity and belonging.
She was influenced by the New York Times’ map of Bush’s battle plans to get into Baghdad and take over Saddam Hussein’s home to portray Lilith, in her “Ishq” (Passion) painting. The lighter coloring contrasts nicely with the darker, background image. The figurine, portraying Lilith, a symbol of despair, is crushed into a swastika shape. Marc Michael Epstein, a brilliant art historian from Vassar College, whom Siona had met at the exhibition’s opening, explained that the swastika had been prevalent in Hinduism and that the symbol had appeared on the interior gates of Herod’s (around 19 CE) refurbishment of the Second Temple, where there were some flower elements present as well.
Source: http://www.jewishartsalon.com/2011/05/siona-benjamins-wandering-blue-indian.html
