Arts and Farts and Raspberry Tarts

Sunday was my first "Spirituality and Consciousness" class with Rabbi Jeremy Kagan. I was expecting this mind-opening seminar seeing as Bezalel is the critical art school in Israel and we all want to be mind blown by creativity. However, this middle-age man with a large, black velvet kippah and tzit tzit walks in with a disheveled briefcase and doesn't even introduce himself. He's a modern orthodox, Yeshiva-bred rabbi. He's from New York (born in Hawaii, actually). He gave a little smirk when I said I was from CT. He studied there apparently (probably at Yale or something). We discussed the 613 mitzvot and the significance of the first commandment which is to Eat of all the Trees in Eden, which he took to mean that our strength, our sustenance, and inspiration comes from an external source. We must seek to be nourished. That kind of thing. You can tell when rabbis believe something, or when they are just pulling stuff out from under their yarlmulkes.

Monday was my first true wheel pottery class. We were given a spin on the wheels. Jaquaranda, our teacher, made it look so effortless....however the whole process of throwing the clay, centering it perfectly on the wheel, stretching it, is soooo hard. It is tenuous and delicate. I left the class with nothing but clay lumps. I had a lot of fun, though. It's feels fantastic to mold mud as it's rotating at a relatively high velocity. We did yoga before we sat at the wheel. Preparing the clay, moistening it, sponging it. It's so tactile and incredibly relaxing. They should teach wheel building in nursing homes and rehabs.

My next class was "The Empty Space" with Michal Somethingorother. I introduced myself to her, explaining I was an international student. There were 3 more of us. Two from Germany and one from Scotland. Michal asked the class, "Who would like to translate today?" and begrudgingly, a young girl volunteered. I felt bad. Michal was lecturing away in Hebrew on the placement of shadow and light in some German artist's installation, and this poor girl had to translate verbatim. The room was dark, and I was falling asleep because I couldn't hear our translator over the drone of the projector and our teacher. I decided to leave and see if I could switch into another class. I again went through the frustrating process of class shopping. The Fine Arts Deptartment Secretary just puffed at her cigarette and poked at the computer keys with her long red nails to tell me that there was nothing available except for drawing (I didn't want to forsake One-Arm's class). I went to the Fashion and Jewelry design department and the Visual Communications department and they also rejected me. I'm just low on the food chain. I get it now.

I ended up reentering "The Empty Space" and Michal gave us a project in which we were to plan a "movie screening" at an "art gallery". In truth, we were to organize our next class, which was to watch an Art Safari episode of a famous German installation artist. I was put into the ritual committee, which controls the order of events. All the English speakers were grouped together, which was convenient. I came up with the idea of having us (the Ritual committee) intently watching the audience as they watched the movie (kinda post-modern, existential...who is the audience? we? you? us?!!!!!!!!) And also to take off their shoes and wash their feet before entering (going all out with the ritual aspect of this). Basically we can do whatever weird stuff we want and get away with it. She ended the class with an "Oh, wait! Next class meet me in Tel Aviv at this gallery I'm going to be exhibited at). I was like: what? Surprise! Hell No am I gonna shlep an hour out of my way to the sketchy part of Tel Aviv to see your weird art. That's a 60 sheckel trip with bus fare and everything!

I came home very tired and ate fried spaghetti and ketchup. Suddenly, Noa knocked on my door and said we were late to see the Masa Mega-event Concert with Idan Raichel. Hannah was going to be there, along with every other non-israeli adolescent Jew taking a gap year. I saw:

Max Feldman

Tali Mandelkern

Sam Dorenberg

Horny

Laina Paulker

The Rimon Kids

Kids from Tel Aviv Ulpan

Yedidya

and Hannah <3

The Concert (They used a Visualizer, dad!)

Me and Hannah (I wore my pajama shirt)

Hannah taking a picture

It was so great to see her there. The concert was fabulous, the music was really eclectic and middle eastern. We got a cab ride home with this crazy fat Russian man who blasted Israeli techno through his pimped-out bass-heavy system.

Today I didn't have class, so I hit the art supplies store near the old Bezalel campus in downtown Jeruslaem. I bought tubes of oil paint (in primary colors), brushes (big, medium, small), a large pad of paper, and a juicy permanent marker. I went to MaxStop to buy a cheap plastic bowl to put water and my pottery tools in, and a cutting board to use as a mixing pallet for painting. I spent probably $200 USD. I guess these are my books. I ate corn out of a can for breakfast/lunch today to further play the part of the bohemian starving artist. I still have to buy stuff for making canvas in the morning.

I then went to the pottery studio to work on my homework (make three cylindrical cups). I ended up making two. It was a whole other experience working alone in the studio until dark. I made the mistake of wearing white pants, which I think will become my messy pants. I'll wear them around the city and be like "yo, hey, I do art, can't you tell?"

(AHHH I just got this annoying piece of lemon grass out from between my gums. And I am listening to the Bill Withers anthology, which makes me happy. Just thought I'd locate you in the moment.)

Tomorrow is painting class. I am glad not to be the only person who hasn't painted with oils and canvas before. I am not afraid of screwing up (the class is focused around "the accident"). I just don't want to waste any of my high-qwalitay paints.

i love you.