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| A single panel : Kavanah |
Fabric Artist, Laura Fendel and Painter Sharon Segal are friends. They are good friends and talented artists. Once a month they spend Shabbat morning together at a very special service know as Keva led by Rabbi Brad Greenstein and Sarah Greenstein at Neveh Shalom (Portland, Oregon)
Keva literally means routine and is balanced by kavanah (intention). Keva participants gather in a large empty room with a beautiful artist-designed wooden ark. The congregants fill the space with their beautiful souls but the walls are bare.
Sharon and Laura looked at this space and wondered if they could bring more kavanah into the physical space that would perhaps inspire greater kavanah in those who come monthly to pray. They sought a design that would accompany the soaring melodies and inspire deeper meditations.
Their work now frames the windows looking out into the forest. The panels of pale green fabric, stitching, and paint seem to emerge from the ark in an organic and moving way. The tree of life emerges in all its natural forms and colors
From concept to finished product this work took a year and half.
The stitching and painting took 8 months.
The Hebrew letters yud, hey, vav, hey are found in each blessing... indicating that
G-d is embedded in everything.
The artists searched nature for the visual mysteries, observing the changes throughout the seasons. Paint and stitchery enhance each other in an intricate dance. There is energy and flow, a sense of integration and balance. Surely, Hashem resides in this place (HaMakom) !
Hiddur Mitzvah is the mitzvah of enhancing any ritual or ritual object. These artists have blessed this space with keva and kavanah. May they also be blessed!
(more pictures and info about the dedication will follow soon)
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