“Justice, justice shall you pursue.” (Deuteronomy 16:20)
The Tzedek Box is a new ritual object, part of an innovative practice encouraging us to answer the Jewish call for
tzedek, justice.
The receptacle houses reflections to increase the frequency and depth of the Jewish response to our broken
world. Each time you engage in volunteer work, philanthropy, advocacy, education, or some other effort to
improve the world, use a slip of paper to write a journal entry about your experience and put it into your Tzedek
Box. A month after Passover on Pesach Sheini, a Biblical holiday allowing for second chances, open your box to
review your past actions and dedicate yourself to deeper acts of justice in the future.
The artists in this exhibition have demonstrated that Judaism provides a remarkable diversity of visual metaphors
with which to elevate the ritual of the Tzedek Box. From the prophetic mighty stream to the Kabbalistic
gathering sparks of light, from the camel, whose name means to do good in Hebrew, to Holocaust imagery that
cries “never again,” each work represents a unique contribution to the age-old conversation about who we are,
looking beyond ourselves, when we seek to do our part to repair the world.
Dr. Andrew Kaplan Mandel ‘23, Fifth-year Rabbinical Student,
Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, New York
Nancy H. Mantell, Ph.D., Curator, Dr. Bernard Heller Museum,
Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion
On View: January 26 – May 15, 2023
1. DEBORAH UGORETZ
Why Not Do More?, 2022
Foamcore, inkjet prints; 12″ x 12″ x 12″
(cover image)
2. MAR MARTINEZ
Vayakhel/and he assembled, 2022
Gold Leaf and transparent acrylic, mixed
media; 15” x15” x 8”
The vessel depicts the Biblical mishkan,
the traveling tabernacle collaboratively
constructed and dedicated to the Greater
Good.
3. FRANN ADDISON
Time to Give, 2020
Pewter, brass, vintage watch/clock parts;
5.5″ x 4″ x 2″
Repair the World, 2020 (not pictured)
Pewter, brass, painted tin; 5.5″ x 4″ x 2.75″
4. ELLEN ALT and LAWRENCE CONLEY
Pursuing Justice, 2020
Poster, 24″ x 36,” box components, 11″ x 17″
5. MAXWELL BAUMAN
The Dove, 2022
LEGO blocks and Gorilla Glue; 5″ x 6.5″ x 6.25″
Noah’s Ark, 2022 (not pictured)
LEGO blocks and Gorilla Glue; 5.75″ x 6″ x 4″
6. MARISA BAGGETT
Freeflow, 2022
Acrylic, silver leaf, resins; 8″ x 5″ x 5″
Alluding to the prophetic words of Amos,
the container urges justice to flow wherever
it is needed.
7. JUDITH BROWN
Gifts of Justice, Sparks of Awe, 2022
Art glass, wood; 9.75″ x 6″ x 5″
Dedicated to regathering the sparks of
creation, the vessel illuminates whenever
a user adds a slip of paper.
8. ISRAEL DAHAN
Scales of Justice, 2022
Brass, 7.87″ x 17.72″ x 3.15″
9. SUSAN DESSEL
Ha Lamaot, 2022
Wood, linen, archival ink;6.125″ x 4.5″ x 2.25″
10. DORIT JORDAN DOTAN and
JUDITH JOSEPH
Cast Your Bread Upon the Waters, 2022
Installation: 3 photographs 13″ x 19″ each;
bottle, paper, ink, jute string 42″ x 3″ x 13″
11. BETH GROSSMAN
A Seat at the Table, 2022
Paint, color pencils, pyrography,
wooden box; 10″ x 6″ x 5″
A champion of inclusion, the artist draws
specific attention to food insecurity.
12. BETH HABER
Honeycomb, 2022
Wood and mixed media; 9″ x 7″ x 4″
Shaped like a honey frame, the top slides
open when its contents are ready for
harvest.
13. MAXINE HESS and
STEPHEN SAMUELS
Mitzvot Garden, 2022
Mixed media, wooden box; 9″ x 8″ x 7″
14. SUZANNE HORWITZ
On Three Things, 2022
Thermal printing, clear matte adhesive,
polymethylmethacrylate; 36″ x 19″ x12″
Drawing on Pirke Avot, the work is devoted
to Torah, service toward God, and acts of
lovingkindness.
15. TOBI KAHN
ZAHRYZ III, 2022
Acrylic on wood; 8.5″x 12″ x 9″
Seventy pieces, resembling a cityscape,
represent a universal commitment to the
world’s 70 nations described in Genesis 10.
16. RACHEL KANTER
For the Trees, 2022
Hand-dyed cotton with silk embroidery; 36″ x 24″
12 pockets hold a year’s monthly notes
documenting acts of justice and kindness.
17. CINDY LUTZ KORNET
A Beacon of Light, 2021
Mixed media, watercolor paper; 7″ x 7″ x 7″
18. BETH KRENSKY
A House for Doris, 2021
Mixed media; 13″ x 7″ x 5.5″
Honoring the artist’s mother who grew up in poverty
and said, “Do something to make a change in the world.”
19. DIANA KURZ
The Pomegranates, 2022
Wood and mixed media; 4″ x 3.25″ x 3.25″
The sages claimed this fruit has 613 seeds, symbolizing
righteousness by corresponding with the 613
commandments of the Torah.
20. TINA MARCUS
The Collection Box, 2010
Found object assemblage; 30″ x 17″ x 22″
A rusted metal mattress frame holding stones from
Dachau concentration camp is a marker of injustice,
compelling us to fill the future with positivity.
21. HOLLY BERGER MARKHOFF
Justice Knows No Other, 2022
Wooden box, paper, gold paint; 11.5″ x 10.4″ x 8.5″
An interactive scroll to record our deeds creates a
continuous chronicle of righteousness.
22. MARK MEICHES
Burdens and Blessings, 2022
Found and repurposed wood metal tools; 15″ x 15″ x 6″
The vessel resembles a camel, whose Hebrew word gamal
means “to do good” and “to reward.”
23. ARLENE SOKOLOW
D.R.E.A.M., 2022
Multimedia; 8″ x 8″ x 8″
“Deconstruction, Rearrangement,
Emergence, Alteration, Metamorphosis”
reuses materials to reduce a global
footprint.
24. REVA JANE SOLOMON
Mommy’s Justice, 2021
Mixed media on wood box; 9″ x 3″ x 3.5″
A personal box, recalling a mother’s love,
encourages small acts of compassion and
justice.
25. YONA VERWER
Foedraal, 2022
Mixed media on aluminum; 8″ x 8″
Foedraal (Dutch for container) depicts a
planet deserving of our protection.
26. ELI KAPLAN-WILDMANN
Pop-Up Tzedek Box, 2022
Paper/assemblage; 7.75″ x 7.75″ x 7.19″
This box, customized and mass-produced
for a variety of Jewish institutions, packs
flat but opens to reveal interactive panels.
27. JANA ZIMMER
This Way…,1995
Collage/assemblage; 3.5″ x 2.25″ x 2.5″
Using the cover of Tadeusz Borowski’s
book about his concentration camp
experiences, the daughter of Holocaust
survivors links memory with the
imperative to act.
28. RONNI PRESSMAN
Opportunities for Healing
Our World, 2021
Stoneware ceramic; 6” x 4” x 3.5”