TOO JEWISH?
CHALLENGING
TRADITIONAL
IDENTITIES
Part 3 of 8

Introductory Space

In an effort to explore some of the artists' sources, the introductory space brings together a selection of symbolic images and objects from popular culture, ranging from children's toys to high fashion. Included are representations of Jews on prime-time television from the 1950s through the 1990s, with excerpts from such series as The Goldbergs, The Jack Benny Program, Saturday Night Live, and Northern Exposure; Barbie Dolls, which inspired many young American girls to strive for a virtually unattainable image of feminine beauty; and examples of couturier Jean Paul Gaultier's Hasidic fashion, which have recently sought to glamorize ethnicity. These examples reveal the power of stereotypes in shaping how Jews have been portrayed, and in the ways they have chosen to represent themselves. Also included in this space is Deborah Kass's Triple Silver Yentl (1992). This work which features Barbra Streisand as the gender deceptive Yentl, a young woman who masqueraded as a male rabbinical student in order to obtain a Jewish education, engages the viewer through an appropriated Pop Art format.


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