Bnei Mitzvah 5782 - 2022 Creative Responses

YEAR 7 CREATIVE RESPONSES

FOREWORD

Hebrew is a unique language as it has shifted from being literature-based to being a living language in the last 150 years. As a result of this, some concepts and ideas in Hebrew have had to be borrowed from other languages –like sandals (sandalim), caravan (caravan) and History (Istoria).

Whilst some words are obviously new constructs, it is curious that History also joins that club. It is because, as Dr Conyer has explained so eloquently, our concept of history is entwined with remembrance. In Jewish tradition, we do not just learn about things, we remember them.

Consider the Pesach Hagada which instructs us to remember the days of Egypt ‘as if you yourself were there.’

In Judaism, time is cyclical. We remember things.

So it is with our Bnei Mitzvah. Through engagement with their families, they have remembered their histories, and this book showcases one aspect of the Bnei Mitzva journey, their creative responses, the culmination of their artistic journey.

Kol hakavod to our Bnei Mitzvah students of 2022, the Hebrew year 5782.

Jeremy Stowe-Lindner, Principal

FRONT ROW L-R: ABIGAIL APTER, AVA LEVINE, MICAH GELFAND, NOAH LEWIS, ELI WOLKENBERG, AMICHAI DUBAND, JESSE STOWE-LINDNER, ASHTON WHINE, ZAC STEEDMAN 2ND ROW: LIOR FELDMAN, ZAHRA ROSEMAN, AMBER GOLDBERG, EVIE LICHTENSTEIN, LIA RUSHINIAK, LIANNE GLAZER, ELLA CARMELI, SYDNEY SMITH, ELIANA FIRESTEIN 3RD ROW: NOAM GOLDBERGER, DANIEL KANAREK, SHIRA LEIVENSOHN, FRANKIE GREENSTONE, ABI PUDEL, ASHTON ZOHAR, HARRY LURIE, HUNTER OWIDE, JAMIE ROSE, LINCOLN BURNS, OLIVIA WOLMAN 4TH ROW: HARLOW LEWIN, SOPHIE GERSHENZON, MIKA ZAAKS, ZOE JANOVER, JESSE UMOW, INDIGO DUBAND, EMI ENGELMAN, CLEO PAUL, CALLAN MATHEWS, JOAH SCHER, YASHA VERKHATSKY, COCO KORONCZYK 5TH ROW: MICHAELA ALTMAN, ELIZABETH LAZAROW, EDITH SCHLUTER, ZAC SPINOSA, ORI DIAMOND, YHONATAN CARMELI, ZAC BERLEY, ZOHAR GALON, LEON PRATT, JOSHUA GILLIS, ELLIE TEPLITSKY, JESSICA LEWIS

TOP ROW: JASMINE MORRIS, JADE SWART, JASMINE GOLDMAN, ORLI ERENBOIM, LIBBY KLARNET, MILES RUBIN, LIOR MAZER, DARCY ARROW, BRANDEN KOSHER, HAO LI, JOSHUA LEVIN, JAKE HYMAN ABSENT: GARY FAIMAN, JESSE HOLSMAN, ELIGH HARRIS

INTRODUCTION

We are so proud of our students. Memory is such a frail construct. What we remember is our pathway to our past. What we forget has the potential to be lost forever. Each individual stands on the shoulders of thousands of family members who came before them. While we inherit their DNA, we are also a composite of their life struggles, choices, opportunities, mistakes, and successes -– and these often remain invisible to us. Yet accessing these memories can often be enlightening, reassuring, or clarifying when made visible. Knowing from where we come is the most powerful foundation for building a confident and firm future. For Jewish tradition, the command ‘Zachor’ to remember, is found over 200 times in our Tanakh. Both God and human beings are commanded to remember? As author Jonathan Safran Foer says: “For the Jewish people, memory is our 6th sense”

The magnificent creations in this catalogue are a record of student research into their family’s past and an exploration of how that past is influencing their present. The students have now recreated the collective memory of their families into an original artefact that will forever shape how this part of their family’s story will be shared in the future. These creations now also offer a conscious choice for how each of our students will relate to their past, drawing upon it to create their future. For us at Bialik, the students are our newest memory keepers. Mazal Tov Year 7.

Bryan Conyer, Head of Jewish Studies

EXHIBITION STATEMENT

This exhibition has been designed specifically around the collective interests of the year level, as their ‘Dor va Dor: In Every Generation’ projects came to life and their creative responses were displayed throughout different zones, namely: The Gallery, The Map Room, The Games Room, Sports and Trophies, The Garden and the Home. These works filled the space in the Mifgash, from the floor to the ceiling.

It is incredible to see how diverse the students’ responses have been, and how they were executed using such varied medium and across a wide range of genres.

There are sculptural works, paintings, textiles, artefacts, woodwork, silversmithing, works on paper and even an edible response within the exhibition. They have been presented in all sizes, great and small, depicted with many nostalgic elements, as a respectful nod to generations past, with representations of the present and elements of hope and imaginings for their families in the future.

In telling their individual stories, either through abstract reference, or by way of presenting specific timelines and facts, when these works are exhibited together, the year 7s and their families, have given life to our Bialik College community’s history as a whole.

Sally Robin, Guest Curator

YEAR 7A

CREATIVE RESPONSES

DARCY ARROW

‘ORIGAMI BIRD’

For my creative response I have decided to make an origami bird sculpture. The birds symbolise migration. Just as a bird migrates from one place to another so too has my family. The six green birds represent two generations of my family: my Yhochan, Yoko Ryan, my Zaida, Adam Ryan, my grandpa, David Arrow, my Bubbi, Vera Kopel. The seventh bird, the red one, represents me. Although I have not personally experienced migration, throughout this year I have learnt about my family’s migration stories and how they have shaped both myself and my family.

ZAC BERLEY

‘TZEDEKAH BOX’

My family on both sides has a lot of history with donating their time to charity. My creative response is a very special tzedakah box and the reason is because of all the history my family has with donating to charity. I felt that a tzedakah box is the perfect resemblance of my family as it shows that my family loves putting time to make other people’s days.

AMICHAI DUBAND

‘SONG 39’

I chose a song for my creative response because I thought I would play to my strength, which is music which has been passed down through the generations in the Liffmann side and the Duband side. My dad has guided me and helped me put everything together. At first he wanted me to rewrite lyrics to a Beatles song, but nothing seemed to fit. It was then that I suggested using the Queen song ‘39’ because I liked that song a lot. I also chose this song because it has the theme of traveling on a journey and ‘39’ is significant because my grandma Helga left German in 1939. Grandma was the youngest of all her siblings and so one week after her 17th birthday, Helga went with her father to Rotterdam where she boarded a boat called the ‘Otranto’ and sailed off on a 6-week journey to Australia Via Colombo. At the end of her journey someone informed her that there was a man waiting for her. She went back to her cabin wondering who that person might be. The man was Sam Duband who later became her wonderful Husband. They had three kids Lorraine, Maurice, and Julian who are now grown up, with children of their own. At the end of the song I wrote: “she survived, lived her life, lucky me!” because had she not survived, my dad Julian would not have been born and neither would I have been. This song shows the real meaning of L’dor Va’dor – from generation to generation.

ORLI ERENBOIM

‘FAMILY TREE’

My creative response represents the bond between the past generations and future generations of my family. The book contains black and white photos and documents dating back to my great great grandparents. It is a picture history of my family. The tree is the story of my family from the past growing into the present. The roots on the bottom of the tree is the connection from the past to the present and beyond. Hanging on the branches are my current family photos and the future of my family. It shows my family from generation to generation

AMBER GOLDBERG

‘POLAROID AND GOLD INSTALLATION’

For my creative response I made a ribbon with polaroid photos of my family and gold-plated leaves to represent Goldberg, my last name. I chose to use a ribbon to incorporate the love of my sport, gymnastics. I used adjustable wire to create the wave affect. I also added modge-podge which hardened the ribbon to help it stay in shape.

FRANKIE GREENSTONE

‘CHARM BRACELET - PAINTING’

My creative response is a painting over photos of the generations of women in my family. In the middle are me and my mum, and on the top left and bottom are my two grandmas. Next to them are my four great-grandmas. Bordering the whole painting is a chain, with different charms passed down and owned by the people in it. The different charms are from necklaces, bracelets and rings, and other jewellery items in my family, and all of them are on the picture of the family member they came from. I wanted to do this because I like the idea of all the different pieces of jewellery passed down through the matriarchs of the family in a painting, and they are all very meaningful.

JAKE HYMAN

‘SPORT AND FAMILY’

I chose sport to represent my family story, because it is something that has been loved by my family through the generations. I chose to represent a few sports that mean the most to me which include football, soccer, and cricket.

SHIRA LEIVENZON

‘THE WELL’

My Creative response is a well. My Great, Great, Great grandfather was one of the founders of Rishon LeTsiyon. The village was going to die if they didn’t have water, so he helped direct the making of the well, one of the first things in Rishon Le’Tsiyon. I have made a replica of this well and put family names on the side. Inside the bucket there are cards with all my ancestors and some information about them. I decided to make this well because it is an important piece of my family history.

AVA LEVIN

‘THE SILENT RIVER’

My creative response is a silent river in between two grassy shores because although there is two very different sides of the family in terms of ethnicity, religion and beliefs, when put together, it can be very beautiful. The river in between represents me and the connection between my mum’s and dad’s families. My immediate family is depicted as the figurines and are colour coded based on the person. I am colourless because this is from my perspective.

JESSICA LEWIS

‘THE HANDS’

NOAH LEWIS ‘'COLD CUTS PLATTER’

‘CHENGDU LANDSCAPE PAINTING’

This painting is from a place in China, Chengdu. Most old buildings look like these. In the mountains, they are built up high, where it is closer to the sky. People pray in these buildings. Most of them are to worship Buddha. Parts of my family still live in the same province as this place. I chose to paint this, because I used to live near enough to those mountains to see them in the distance. I always wanted to see what was at the top of them as I was told. I was one when I moved to Australia and do not remember much, but I still have a vague idea of what the mountains looked like and my parents told me I kept trying to crawl to the mountains. Whenever I think of those mountains, it reminds me of the rest of my family, who I am too young to remember, but when I think of them, I know that my grandmother too can see them and it makes me feel closer to these people who I have barely any memory of, but still want to meet. The mountain’s roads are very hard to get up, most of them you must go over sketchy old bridges. I chose this because it was the province that I was born in. It is connected to my ancestry because my grandfather on my mum’s side was also an artist and that is what inspired me to draw the clouds in the background. The other reason why I chose to do an art piece is because I am good at art, I have been doing it since I was very young. I love art because it can show your emotions on a completely different level.

EVIE LICHTENSTEIN

‘TUTU’

For my creative response I chose to have a tutu because I love to dance. I incorporated generations and generations of my family on this tutu. Both dance and my family are very important to me, and they both play a part in my life. Dance and family are both a part of me.

HARRY LURIE

‘DOCTOR’S BAG’

My creative response is a leather doctor’s bag containing documents and information about my family. Inside the doctor’s bag I have included medical ID tags of my grandparents and great grandparents which tells you their names and when and where they were born. I have also included specimen jars containing collected shells, stones and coral that reflect my love for nature, that has been passed down from generation to generation from my mother’s side of the family. I have also included a wattle tree which connects my Australian heritage. I have also included an eye chart with my family tree imprinted on the back. Finally I have included a medical textbook containing some favourite family recipes, these recipes have been passed on from generation to generation on both my mum and dad’s sides of the family.

JOAH SCHER

‘BASKETBALL’

For my creative response I have done a collage of documents and significant photos from my family’s history. I stuck the collage onto a mini basketball ring to represent my passion of basketball.

‘FAMILY BOOKSHELF’

I have chosen to represent my family as books on a bookshelf. I have categorised the books into my mother’s maternal and paternal sides, and my father’s side. Each book has a family unit, going back through the generations. Each book is physically connected to the shelves in date order to make sure that the viewers understand how the family becomes one through me. If I have found something interesting about my family members, I have written about it to memorialise them. I will be able to pass this on to future generations so they will also know about my family. It is a bit like meeting a person, getting a sense of what they did or what their world was like, or who they were. While creating my family trees, I have discovered many things to ponder and fill my books with like connections with a long line of Rabbis, an Israeli politician, and a King!

JADE SWART ‘FAMILY COOKBOOK’

I have chosen to make a family cookbook with the stories behind each recipe. Since I was young I have always had a passion for cooking. I had the idea to cook one family meal with some of the people I love my parents, grandparents, aunties and uncle. I thought this would be a perfect way to learn about my family and what meals that have been passed down from generation to generation. I hope I can cook these dishes for my family one day. I cooked each dish with my family member and summarised the story behind the dish. On each recipe is a QR code that links to a video of them telling the story behind the dish and some behind the scenes of the cooking with some tips.

YASHA VERKHATSKY

‘VERKHATSKY CARDS’

My creative response is called Verkhatsky cards. It is a small deck of cards made up of my family members with a short explanation and description of their lives. I came up with the idea of cards because it reminded me of my early childhood which was collecting Pokémon cards.

ASHTON ZOHAR

‘CRICKET BAT’

My creative response was inspired by my favourite sport, cricket. I started playing cricket from the age of 5 and since then I have always had a favourite bat. In designing the stickers, I have used Royal Blue and white, which are the colours of the AFL team I support (North Melbourne). I have designed the stickers, using photoshop in the style of the New Balance bat that I currently use. I have incorporated my name and initials into the design of the stickers. I hope in generations to come, to pass my love of cricket on to the next generation.

YEAR 7B

CREATIVE RESPONSES

LINCOLN BURNS

‘HANDS’

For my creative piece, I have made a work recognising the men in my family and their role in each generation. They are all very talented and used their hands for their careers, in one way or another. In my creative piece, I will showcase both my grandfathers’ hands, my father’s hand and my own, to show the link between the generations. Each hand is holding a tool or item, which that person used.

My grandfather Robert Burns was a Mechanic most of his career, so I have got his hand holding a spanner. My grandfather Jacob Shelton did many things, from shoe making, sewing leather goods, to women’s clothes, so I have his hand holding a needle and thread. My father, Jason Burns, is a Carpenter, so he holds a hammer. Finally, my hand, is holding a pencil, as I love to draw. The hands are made from concrete and plastic. They are mounted on a board. The hands are airbrushed in a gold colour to represent how valuable they are.

ELLA CARMELI

‘SHABBAT CANDLES’

In this creative response I would like to express the beauty and the pride of the Shabbat candle lighting tradition. This tradition has passed for thousands of years from generation to generation despite all the difficulties and challenging times that the Jewish people have gone through in history.

In a symbolic way, it is one act which kept the Jewish people’s light and spirit alive.

In my roots project I also learnt about my great-greatgrandfather Yaakov Toledano, the grandfather of my grandmother Tamar, who had a candles factory in Meknes, Morocco (1891 – 1953).

May we remember our Jewish ancestors and continue practicing the beautiful רודמ – Jewish traditions that have been given from generation to generation .רודל

ORI DIAMOND ‘MOROCCAN FISH’

The topic of Dor Va Dor made me think about one thing that brings my family together. That is the love of food and spending time with my family. I thought of a recipe that has been in our family for many generations and I straight away thought of the Moroccan Fish. The Moroccan Fish recipe is a very special and unique recipe to my family as it has been passed down many generations and is made on every Friday night. Around this recipe you will see 5 bowls. Each bowl in my creative response represents a value in my family such as, Honesty, Respect, Responsibility, Love and Independence. This Creative Response means a lot to me and my family as we are happy to share a very important and unique recipe of our Family.

SOFIE GERSHENZON ‘GUESS WHO’

ELIGH HARRIS ‘FAMILY PORTRAIT’

DANIEL KANAREK

‘SUITCASE’

This suitcase contains a teaspoon, a hat and a temporary Italian passport. This very teaspoon was one of the few objects of value that my family took out of Odessa. It is the spoon with which my mother was fed. My mother would wear this very hat in Italy as well as in Australia. This passport was issued to my grandmother and to my mother in Rome, so that they could travel to Australia, which is where we now live today. Each one of these items is very important and sentimental to my family and each one was a small part of my family’s huge story.

LIBBY KLARNET

‘FINGERPRINTS’

For my creative response I have chosen to represent the generations of my family through fingerprints. I have used the shape of a heart to symbolise the love, care and continuity that help our family to continue to grow even though each fingerprint is unique we still share our love for each other.

COCO KORONCZYK ‘RECIPE BOOK’

For my bnei creative project I have decided to make a recipe book. I chose that idea because food is a very important aspect of my life, not just my life however my included ancestors. Food has always been an aspect in my life, from Lord of the Fries to Monday night dinners my whole family has together. Within that reasoning is why I chose to do a recipe book filled with my family’s recipes as a creative project.

JOSHUA

LEVIN ‘CHICKEN SOUP’

From my two heritages comes two meaningful and soulful soups: ‘Jewish Chicken’ soup, and ‘Chicken Pho’ soup, which have more than just nutritional value, they also have medicinal effect. My creative response shows that from the two soups, comes my culture and heritage — from Israel, Vietnam, German, Poland and Australia. As the soups mix as one, the rice noodles spills over the sides and my family tree and history are shown along the noodles’ strains.

HUNTER OWIDE

‘HELENA & MAURICE RABBIE’

My creative response is a box based on my two cousins Helena and Maurice Rabbie. The reason I have chosen these two cousins as they are my family’s only relation to the Holocaust.

As you look through this box you will learn about their story and their parents.

‘RUGBY FIELD’

For my creative response I chose to make a mini rugby field. Rugby League is a big part of our family as we support the Melbourne Storm. My dad has played rugby since he was a kid back in New Zealand and brought his love of the sport to us. The mini rugby players are my family and cousins. The teams are New Zealand v Australia, and the All-Blacks are the Pauls', and the Aussies are the Litwinows'. The rugby positions go back in generations so the kids at the front are the latest generation and the ones at the back are the earliest generations. The Aussie team is made up of my first cousins: Maddi is 17, Jonty is 14 and Toby is 11. Then for their parents, I have Uncle Andrew and Danny. On the All-Blacks team there is Sophie, Lexie and I. Sophie is 27, Lexie is 15 and I am 13. Our parents are behind us then our dad’s mum, Nana Paul, is at the back. My dad (Colin) is 53 and my mum (Rebecca) is 42. The Pauls' and the Litwinows' are going head-to-head to see which family wins. My pets are in the background. Both of my dogs have unfortunately passed away, but we still have our cat. CJ is the German shepherd, and he recently passed this year in June. He was 12 years old, and he was my best buddy. Bailey, our golden retriever, passed when I was around the age of 2. Our cat Mango is a rescue breed, so we weren’t given his age or breed when we got him in September 2020 but he is around 2 years old.

LEON PRATT ‘DOR VA DOR SONG’

I wanted to create something that represented me. I have always been a musical person, so it felt right to do a song. In the lyrics I talk about the story of the Pratt side of my family’s immigration.

ABIGAIL PUDEL

‘FAMILY PUZZLE’

My creative response is a photo of my family made into a puzzle. My family can sometimes be very complicated, as all families are, however, much like a puzzle, everything fits in together. Each piece of the puzzle symbolises a different person in my family, each person an individual and not like any other piece, but the puzzle would not be complete without that piece, and my family would not be complete without that person.

JAMIE ROSE

‘TIME CAPSULE’

This is a family time capsule. The rules are every 10 years you must add important photos, notes of important family moments and important historical information of the time –- into the capsule. I have chosen to add a newspaper article to start the capsule of the Melbourne lockdowns during the covid pandemic. The first child to get married is to take this capsule and repeat the instructions over many generations.

EDITH SCHLUTER

‘DECK OF CARDS’

My creative response is a deck of cards, chosen because in the evening, my family plays a German card game called ‘Doppelkolf’. This game never fails to bring my family together. I chose the symbols replacing the spades, clubs, diamonds, and hearts as the: ‘Inkpot’ which represents art, my mother’s side often makes calligraphy and portraits of people, and it is something my family enjoys doing. The ‘Magen David’ represents the Jewish side of my family, my dad’s side. The ‘Dumpling’ represents my mother’s side of the family, Chinese cuisine is often cooked by my mother. ‘The Bookmark’ as reading is another hobby that brings my family together. We constantly recommend books to each other and have weekly trips to the library together. I also changed the colours of a normal card game to: Yellow – which symbolises luck in China, it is used in the Chinese and German flag. The Blue symbolises calmness and serenity and is used in the Israeli flag. The Red symbolises luck and happiness in Chinese culture and it also in the Chinese and German flag. The king, queen, and jack have been changed to photos of people in my family. The back of the cards is a photo of me, my sister, my mum and my dad. The four pillars of the pencils represent the pillars of my family.

SYDNEY SMITH ‘A

STEP IN TIME’

The inspiration around my creative piece is based on the idea of transition from generation to generation. I wanted to vividly show the journey of a young lady over time. The one side of the dressing table represents my life and the other represents that of my great grandmother, Rita Judelman. I chose her because I feel a very strong soul connection to her. I was born on the day that she died and she played an enormous role in raising in my mother. The mirror represents the strength of family and the concept of identity. I wanted to emphasise the impact that the previous generations have had on my life. The images in the mirror begin with me as a baby, and evolve into my mother, grandmothers, and great grandmothers, who are all part of my body and soul.

ASHTON WHINE

‘MATCHBOXES’

The theme ‘Dor Va Dor’— generation to generation, was the inspiration for this creative piece. The matchboxes signify a mini snapshot of my family’s lives in a visual form. Collectively it’s the visual mapping of memories of them. The ‘Chai’ represents the Hebrew symbol for LIFE, it also has the symbolic meaning of the number 18 which is a good omen in Jewish culture. Each matchbox tells its own quirky tale of cultural identity, tradition, gender roles and migration themes. The matchboxes also signify fire which in Jewish symbolism signifies warmth and light. The matches are used for lighting the shabbat candles, the stove, the ‘chanukiah’ and the ‘Yahrzeit’ candle. It also symbolises that as Jews, we should always have a passion for life and our flame, our humour, our enthusiasm should always keep burning. It is the symbol of hope and strength allowing our ancestors to survive even the most difficult circumstances and a reminder for the next generation to be blessed with freedom and peace.

MIKA ZAACKS

BASKETBALL PENDANT’

After watching the 21st Maccabiah games I realised my passion for basketball could lead me to Israel one day. I've set myself a goal to compete in the 2025 Maccabiah games in the girls’ junior basketball team. As basketball will be the reason I first visit Israel, my creative response to my ‘shorashim’ journey is a combination of basketball and my family (my two passions). I have created a pendant in the form of a basketball. This pendant is in four pieces and each member of my immediate family will receive a part of the whole. Basketball is not only the thing I am most enthusiastic about, but it is the activity that brings my family together. Whether we are supporting each other from the stands, or cheering on our favourite team together, it’s a sport that unifies us as a family. It’s our common interest and our joint passion. As I’ve learned by doing my Roots Project that none of us would be who we are without our ancestors, I cannot reach my goal of getting to Israel without the support of my family and that is why the pendant is not going to be worn by me alone, but rather shared between my family who together will help me reach my goal.

YEAR 7C

CREATIVE RESPONSES

MICAELA ALTMAN

‘EMERGING FROM THE ASHES’

For my creative response, I have created a painting titled ‘Emerging From The Ashes’. My painting is the story of how hope turned a tool of persecution into a symbol of pride. Today, the Magen David is Israel’s most recognised symbol. 1930-1940’s Europe was a dismal place for Jews. To be Jewish meant shame, persecution and sorrow. The yellow star was only one of the ways in which the Nazis tried to diminish our culture. Today, we proudly display the Star of David on Israel’s flag. However, the Holocaust executed 6 million innocent Jewish lives and it has forever left a deep mark on Jewish history. I showed this in my painting by creating yellow spots on the leaves, representing the yellow colour of the ‘Jude’ star. At the bottom of my painting, I included smoke and a burnt age. This represents the crematoriums as well as the burning of our religious texts. One of our traditions is to remember the sad chapters of our history, even during moments of happiness. This inspires gratitude, which leads to hope and then to perseverance.

Just like trees with good roots regenerate after a bush fire, our faith, values, and principles enabled us to emerge from one of the darkest chapters of our history.

ABIGAIL APTER

‘CHESS’

For my creative response I have chosen to do a chess board, but instead of the tiles being black and white it is a print out of a map that shows my family's journey. This is shown by putting chess pieces on the relevant countries/ squares and making as if it were a chess game. This is significant because many people from both sides of my family play/played chess.

YHONATAN CARMELI

‘BAR MITZVAH FLAGS AND ALBUM IN BOX’

I have chosen to represent a family tradition that began when my dad celebrated his Bar mitzvah in 1980. The Bar mitzvah flags. The Bar mitzvah flags are to be passed on from generation to generation to every Bar mitzvah boy in the family. On the flags, the name, date of birth and parents’ names of the Bar mitzvah boy will be embroidered. Today, the flags are in my hands and I will pass it on to the next Bar mitzvah boy. In addition to our family’s flags tradition, I have made an album, where there is a page for every upcoming Bar mitzvah boy, where he can write what he aspires to be when he grows up and when he has a son many years later, the son would be able to do the same and the father would then be able to write what his life is like and his current job. The creative response on display are the flags in a beatifically designed box that I have constructed and decorated, together with the new album that will be made to match the box and the flags within it.

LIOR FELDMAN

‘DIGITAL WORLD MAP’

My Creative Response is a video of a digital world map signifying where my paternal grandfather Leon Feldman has lived throughout his life. Accompanying the video is a backing-track played by my dad and I, recorded at my uncle’s studio where the music changes according to the country the drawn line has arrived. (Israel, Poland, Australia) The video starts at Leon’s birthplace and ends where he dies. I chose this because it links to Dor Va Dor and my family takes great pride in its roots.

ELIANA FIRESTEIN

'MY GREAT-GRANDMOTHER’S HOME’

My creative response is a digital artwork, printed on canvas portraying my Great- grandmother, Esther Cohen’s home. When Esther was a child most of her family were murdered during the Holocaust. As a survivor, Esther made Aliyah to Israel where she helped to establish a Kibbutz by the name of Alonei Abba. In Alonei Abba, Esther created a home filled with light and love despite the darkness she emerged from. In this artwork, this is depicted by a light coming from the window. One of Esther’s passions was gardening. She devoted much of her free time cultivating and nurturing beautiful roses, bougainvillea and fruit trees. In this artwork we can see the verdant colours of Esther’s garden. The greenery and blooms blend into her house, symbolic of how important it was for Esther to bring new life and hope closer to her home and heart.

ZOHARGALON

‘SUITCASE’

ThereasonIchosetoputmycreativeresponseinasuitcasewas becausemanyofmyfamilymembershadtoleavewheretheywere previouslylivingbecauseofthewar.Alltheytookwiththemwas whattheycouldfitintoasuitcase.Insidethesuitcaseis1item whichwasmostprecioustoeachofmygreat-grandparents.Alocket withaphotoofhermother,thatmygreat-grandmotherwouldhave beenkilledforifitwerefound,apackofcigarsformygreatgrandfather,becausehefeltaneedtoprovideforhisfamilysohe dideverythinghecouldtogivehisfamilyahappylife,evenifit meantgettingarrestedfordealingincigars.Alightbluetablecloth formygreat-grandmotherwithherinitialsonitbecauseitwasone oftheonlythingshermothergaveherbeforeshefledtheNazis, withouthermother,whostayedbehindtotendtoherowndying mother.IdrewapaintingoftheDuneeraformygreat-grandfather, hewasontheDuneeraanddrewdrawingsoflifeonit,but unfortunatelythedrawingswerelaterdestroyed.Formygreatgrandfather,Iputstoriesofhislifeinasealedcontainerbecausehe hadatraumaticchildhoodasanorphan,wanderingthrough Europe.Hisstoriesmadehimwhohewas,buthedidhisbestto buryhispast.FormyothertwogreatgrandparentsIdidadate seed.TheybothleftEuropeforIsraelandhelpedsetupakibbutz, theychosethelocationbasedonamassivedatetreetheysaw.The seedalsorepresentsthehopeanddreamtheyhadtogrowIsrael fromaseedintoaflourishingtree.Finally,Ididabagofspicesfor mylastgreat-grandparentbecauseitwasoneoftheonlythingsthey hadfromtheirparents,anditrepresenttheirJewishidentity.

LIANNE SHINA GLAZER

‘TEDDY BEARS’

In this display there is a very old suitcase, an old teddy bear nearly 100 years old and a big white bear. The suitcase represents the many migrations that my family has gone through. Emigrating from Iraq, Siberia, Lithuania and Israel, ending up here in Australia. The very old teddy also migrated. It belonged to my Grandmother Rina Shina, and then was passed on to my aunties and down to my mother. My mother passed it on to me and to my brother, Kai. So it migrated once more, this time to Australia. The big white teddy represents me. It wears a very special dress. This dress is made of old black and white photos of the ancestors of my family. There are pictures going back four generations of my family. I am who I am thanks to these people that came before me, and I am proud to carry their memories in my heart forever. The teddy bear is a gift of love, an unconditional love. It is passed on from generation to generation, and brings something magical to the human spirit. It also offers reassurance, security, and companionship. It is meaningful and precious, and it represents our family history. I am honoured to pass it on to the next generations of my family, together with the memories of our beloved ancestors.

NOAM GOLDBERGER

‘RUBIK’S CUBE’

As my creative response I chose a Rubik’s cube. I chose a Rubik’s cube because it relates to family, even though sometimes it’s hard to solve (like problems) it can always be fixed. On it I put photos of different parts of my family. I did this to portray the even when mixed we are still one big family. On one of the sides I put the Israeli flag and on the other my family emblem as it connects to all of us.

LIOR MAZER

‘KAPUSNIAK SOUP’

My Roots Project Creative Response is a Kapusniak soup in a wooden bowl, with a steel spoon, and it has photos of my parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents. The soup represents my roots in Poland, the wooden bowl represents my dad’s side of the family as his last name ‘Mazer’ means a wooden bowl; and the steel spoon represents my mother’s side of the family as her maiden name ‘Sztal’ means steel. The photos in the soup (which is made from resin) are surrounding a mirror at the bottom of the bowl.

JASMINE MORRIS

‘PLATTER’

The idea for my creative response came from combining my love of clay and my family history. My mum’s family is Sephardic, they moved from Morocco to Israel, and my dad’s family is Ashkenazi, and they came from multiple Eastern European countries. This platter represents my family history as it combines the traditional Moroccan pattern (right) with the leaf (left), which is a theme used in Ashkenazi art. The patterns gradually merge to represent myself, as a combination of both cultures. Within the patterns, there are names of places. These names represent the various locations that are significant to my family history. On the left side of the platter, are the names of places in Eastern Europe (where dad’s family originated from). Further to the right, England is named because the family moved from Eastern Europe to England. They then moved from England to Australia, as shown on the platter. To the right side of the platter, are names of places in Morocco (where mum’s family originate from). Further towards the middle there are names of places in Israel, because the family moved to Israel. Mum then moved on to Australia. Therefore, the circle in the centre represents my family in Australia. The colours chosen are typical to the pattern, turquoise is a common colour in Moroccan art, and green is the colour of leaves. Australia was painted yellow because it is known as a sunny country.

‘LE DOR VA DOR’

When I thought of an idea for my creative response, the first thing I thought of was something that would connect all the elements of my roots project. This year’s theme was: ‘Dor va Dor’ so I connected my family’s story in an art form. I chose three maps that show where my family came from and where we are today. The maps I chose were Europe, Israel, and Australia. Music is one of the things I love most in my life and all the musical notes in the art piece represent that. Every note represents someone in my family and the treble clef represents the future generations to come. I chose to write a line from an Israeli song by Oded Feldman: “Et hamangina hazot ee efshar lehafsic” it means we cannot stop this rhythm and I am obligated to keep on telling my family’s story forever, ‘Le Dor Va Dor’. I will pass their stories on to future generations, so no one will forget them and what they have been through.

JESSE STOWE-LINDNER

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תורודה

תיירפס : BOOKSHELF/FAMILY LIBRARY‘

The תורודה תיירפס means library of generations. There are 5 generations of people written about in this library. Each generation is represented in a different colour book. In each book: Front cover: on the front cover of each book is a family member’s name and a picture of them. Inside the book: inside the book you will find a description of the family member. On the second page is another picture of them and if there is no picture available, (burnt in the holocaust) there will be more writing or a picture of a certificate. Back of the book: on the back of the book is a flag of the country they were born in. Then there is also a piece of writing telling us where and when they were born and when they died. Why a library? I chose to have a little library as my creative response because my family and I love reading books. Books can let people have a better understanding of the world and can make us be better people.

ELI WOLKENBERG ‘COMIC BOOK’

My name is Eli Wolkenberg, and for my creative response, I created a comic book. I decided to do this because I thought it was important to share some stories about the lives of my family, and drawing is a good way to depict it. It also let me use my imagination and be creative, while relating it back to my family, and I enjoyed the challenge. Each individual story is something my family members have told me, in interviews or during conversation. They are each unique, as all my family members are. I hope you enjoy looking at the drawings I have made.

OLIVIA WOLMAN ‘STUDY & RECIPES’

For my creative response I’ve decided to do a study with many recipe books that belong to my family, and a recipe book. My recipe book has recipes from many generations ago to now. People from around Australia have put a recipe in, and even some recipes from South Africa are in there! It’s the perfect book for shabbat when you’re looking for something delicious to eat! The study with shelves filled with recipes books, is a representation with how food has been passed down for so many years and how the recipes are still being used till this day.

YEAR 7D

CREATIVE RESPONSES

‘COLLAGE’

InmycreativeresponseIhaveincludedvariousthingsthathad beenpasseddownfrom‘generationtogeneration’.Ihavechosen todoacollagebecauseonmymum’ssideofthefamily,artisa verybigdeal.Manypeopleinmymum’sfamilyare/wereartists, andIwantedtocarryonthetradition.Thebackgroundisa collagemadefromrecipesfrom2differentcookbooks,onefrom mygrandma(dad’sside),andonefrommygreatgrandma (mum’sside).Itisveryimportanttomebecausetheserecipes havebeenpasseddowntomyfamilywhoenjoyeatingthese deliciousrecipeswheneverpossible.ThenIhavecollagesofmy grandparentsfrombothsides,myparents,andme.Iusedthese familymembersbecauseitshows3generationsofmyfamily,and alsobecauseitwashardertoaccessphotosfromfurtherbackin time.SomeofthecollagepaperIusedmymumhasusedinher amazingartworkinthepast,andeveninthebookherandmy dadpublishedtogether!Sosomeofthepapershavetechnically beenpasseddownfromgenerationtogeneration.Also,thepaper mydad’svestismadeoutofisprettyspecial.ThepageIusedwas rippedoutofmyuncle’soldmusicbook!Soyetagain,thathad beenpasseddownfromgenerationtogeneration.OverallIreally enjoyedcreatingthiswork,eventhoughIhadtolearnwhattodo, andteachmyselfalongtheway,ithasbeenanamazing experience.

‘ANCESTRAL SHIRT’

My creation is a white shirt, this commemorates Otto Taussig and his factory. On this shirt, I have recreated the Logo from my great great-grandfather’s label. On the body of the shirt, I have represented all my ancestors from both sides, by ironing on treasured photos from my family today and all my ancestors. I have interspersed these photos with red hearts, four leaf clovers and stars of David. The hearts represent the love I have for my family and link to the 3 hearts brand. The clovers represent my connection to Ireland. My Grandmother and her family immigrated from Ireland when she was 5 years old. The star of David represents my Jewish connection. On one sleeve I have the Taussig side. Here I have all the family names from this side, and I have the Austrian flag and some Irish flags. The flags represent the countries where these family members came from. The other sleeve represents the Engelman names and flags of Ireland and Israel, from that side of the family. You will note that not all pictures are perfect. I left them this way, as this shows that life experiences are not perfect or always ideal, but all mixed together it is still really a beautiful creation.

GARY FAIMAN ‘SCULPTURE’

The sculpture depicts an Ashkenazi Jew being dragged back by a sickle and a bayonet symbolising communism and war. The man is wearing black because in my family, it’s tradition to wear black to a funeral and this is about all the bloodshed and loss during the tragic times. The tiles the man is standing on are red and blue. The blue is always in between two reds, On one side the Nazis and on the other communism, the blue symbolising Judaism. Jews were always trapped within the ranks of the two, this depicts how my family was always on the run trying to escape from both sides.

MICAH GELFAND

‘ESCAPE FROM THE GHETTO’

My paternal great grandfather took part in the mass escape from the Novogrudik Ghetto, so I decided to make a Lego model of it.

JOSHUA GILLIS

‘CAKE’

Hello everyone, as you’re looking at my creative response, I’m sure that you’re wondering why I chose to make this. Well, here’s the answer. First off, everyone loves cake. It tastes good and it shows a symbol of celebration which is the reason I made it. It shows photos of my family with myself and their parents. (Which is edible, I know right, edible paper!) When my Zaide turned 70 he had a cake made where himself, his wife, his kids and grandkids were sitting on a couch. Cake isn’t just a great thing because it tastes good, it shows that you are at a celebration - whether it’s a funeral or a birthday, cake is always there. So I hope you have a better understanding on why I decided to make this cake.

JASMINE GOLDMAN ‘STAIRS’

My creative response represents stairs for generations of my family. On each side of the stairs it shows each step a different generation.

JESSE HOLSMAN ‘GUMBOOTS’

My idea was to use a pair of gumboots and plank of wood with some nature items. The gumboots are covered in photos of my family from past and present, as well as last names and meaningful words. The gumboots are attached to the plank of wood which will be the base of my creative response. I have chosen this response because over the years I feel that I’m getting a stronger connection with nature. We just moved to a farm with 10 acres and I spend everyday in my gumboots surrounded by nature and animals. I want to connect my past family to this by decorating my gumboots with their photos, names and words that have had meaning to me through the roots project.

ZOE JANOVER ‘BUTTERFLY’

I have chosen a butterfly which I preserved and pinned with my mum. Butterflies are a symbol of the life cycle, transformation and hope, which I feel relates to the stories I have heard from my grandparents. I have written the names of many of my relatives, including those who are most important to me.

BRANDEN KOSHER

‘SOCCER FIELD’

The reason I decided to make a soccer field is that each member of my family has played soccer and enjoys it. I have been playing the sport since before I could walk. My mother reminds me of how I would sit on the couch and my dad would put a soccer ball between my feet and I would kick it. I love the sport. My brother and my dad are all big soccer fans. The first electronic game I remember playing was FIFA 17. A soccer game where you would control a real-life team with real life players, and you would play against your friends or the computer. Each player would have stats based on their soccer performance that year. What I have done is I have made a little soccer game, my mum’s family against my dad’s. The numbers on the back of the players is the year they were born in. Each member of my family will be based on three life stats: Judaism, Achievements and Contributions to Society. There are two parts to my response: A player’s manual book and the team line ups.

ELIZABETHLAZAROW

‘TWO-SIDEDARTWORK’

Mycreativeresponseisatwo-sidedartwork,madeupofone paintedsideandonecollageside.Thesetwopartsare connectedastheybothareofshopsownedbydifferentsidesof myfamily.ThepaintedsideisofaKoshergrocerandpickle shopmygrandfather’sfamilyusedtoowninCarlton.Ihave actuallygottentheopportunitytovisititandmygrandfather explainedallaboutitsimportancetomyfamilyinhisinterview. Theothersideisapictureofapaintingbysomeoneelse(John Kramer)andisofanoldgeneralstoremygreatgrandfatheron theothersideofthefamilyusedtoown.ThisshopwasinCape townandthebuildingis,tomyknowledge,nolongerexistent. Thatisthemainreasonwhythepicturelooksshatteredor splintered.ItsalsothattheonlyconnectionIfeeltotheshopin capetownisseeingmysurnameinbiglettersoverthetop, whereastheshopinCarltonhasadeeperandmoreimportant meaningtome.Thefactthatthetwosidesofmyfamilyboth ownedsimilarstoresincompletelydifferentpartsoftheworld wassuchanamazingcoincidencetomethatassoonasI discoveredIknewitwasgoingtobeapartofmycreative response.Aroundtheoutsidearepicturesofmyimmediateand extendedfamily,whomIwantedinmycreativeresponseas theyhaveaveryspecialplaceinmyheart.Intheprocessof creatingmyresponse,Iwasabletolearnsomuchmoreabout bothsidesofthefamilyandgainadeeperunderstandingand connectiontomypast.

HARLOW LEWIN

‘WOODEN FIGURES’

My creative response is a board of people. These figures made of wood represent my blood related family from my great grandparents to me and my brother. I chose these wood people because my grandma wears a necklace with the same type of boy and girl holding hands.

CALLAN MATTHEWS

‘BACKGAMMON’

I built a backgammon board for my creative response. There are two teams in backgammon, and I have decided that the one team will be my mum’s side of the family and the other team will be my dad’s side of the family.

ZAHRA ROSEMAN

‘OLIVE TREE’

My creative response is the symbolic olive tree with pictures of some of my ancestors and their documents hanging off the leaves. It sits in a pot covered in a collage with the most profound ancient Jewish symbols and texts. The mosaic and collage represent the raw roots of my historical background and the leaves and olives the fruits of my background – my ancestors. The hessian in the pot is soil and represents the future and the fragile state of our environment; and how we must heed the lessons of our teachings and incorporate them into the most pressing issue of our times. The Jewish symbols on the pot are my raw real roots that have shaped my ancestors. Therefore, this is an integral part of my character and DNA as well. My family come from all over the world and now we are privileged to be many generations in the lucky country. We are a family of survivors. A family with grit. Warriors, pioneers, free thinkers, creatives, and educators –this can be directly linked to our Jewish history - Loyalty and adherence to the highest values. A family that places education as the highest priority. With education comes knowledge and wisdom. Through knowledge, we can make the world a better place TIKKUN OLAM. I follow in their footsteps. I can make the world a better place. I can have compassion for those with less. I can strive for social and environmental justice. In the words of Einstein “strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value”

MILES RUBIN

‘BABUSHKA DOLLS’

For my creative response I decided to represent my family through babushka dolls with pictures of my family. There are two set of dolls. One set are my mum’s side of the family and the other set is my dad’s. The smallest dolls in the middle are both me because I am part of both sides of the family. Please see the poster above detailing each babushka doll with a picture of the person and information about them.

ZAC SPINOSA

‘SOUL AND SOIL’

This piece is a dedication to my great aunt Marila and my grandfather Eli, her younger brother. Marila Lichtblau was taken away from our family by the Nazis in the Holocaust. My grandfather Eli Light (Lichtblau) was a survivor of the Holocaust. Unfortunately, he passed away a few weeks ago. The rocks in the piece represent the custom where Jewish people put rocks on a grave, but Marila had no grave. The transparent photo represents that they are not with us in real life, but in spirit. The sky painting background represents that their spirits are in heaven.

ELLIE TEPLITSKY ‘RUSSIAN LOVE POEM’

games games games room

room room

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

SPECIAL THANKS TO TAB HERZEL, IDAN MALKA-SHILO & ROHAN DODD FOR THEIR BEAUTIFUL PHOTOGRAPHY OF THE WORKS OF ART

A VERY BIG THANK YOU TO ROHAN AND THE REST OF THE MAINTENANCE TEAM INCLUDING, PHIL, JOE AND FRED FOR PHYSICALLY HELPING TO BRING THE EXHIBITION TO LIFE AND TO ANDREAS KAMMEL FOR MAKING ALL OF THE EXHIBITION SIGNS.

THANK YOU ALSO TO NAOMI SWART AND MICHELLE BARNETT FOR THEIR ASSISTANCE IN THE SETTING UP OF THE EXHIBITION.

OVER 100 ITEMS WERE BORROWED TO SUPPORT THE EXHIBITION FROM AROUND THE SCHOOL, INCLUDING THE ARTS, DRAMA AND SPORTS DEPARTMENTS AS WELL AS ADDITIONAL PIECES BORROWED FROM HOMES & BUSINESSES, THANK YOU KATE BEACONSFIELD, GARY BRAND, TANYA CHERNY, ROHAN DODD, ELI EREZ, LAUREN FARRUGIA, KAREN FRIEDE, LINDA GERSTEL, ZAC GOMO, RAFF GRASSO, JANIS KINDA, SALLY MCCREDDIE, DEBBIE PORATT, JEREMY STOWE-LINDNER, MICHAELA STRANG, NAOMI SWART, JULIA TEPERSON & MICK WHEELER.

MAZEL TOV AND THANK YOU ALL THE BNEI TEACHERS WITHOUT WHOM THIS EXHIBITION WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE YR 7 STUDENTS AND TO THEIR FAMILIES WHO HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THIS SPECIAL BIALIK ROOTS PROJECT

BRYAN CONYER, ZAC GOMO, RACHEL ISRAEL, TOBY MAC, SALLY ROBIN AND THE ENTIRE BNEI MITZVAH TEAM FOR 2022

i a l i k R o o t s P