Museum of Biblical Art (New York City)

Last updated
Lobby of the American Bible Society building WTM NewYorkDolls 060.jpg
Lobby of the American Bible Society building

The Museum of Biblical Art (MOBIA) was a museum in Manhattan, New York City, that closed in 2015.

Contents

MOBIA was a non-collecting institution dedicated to exploration of the Bible's legacy in Jewish and Christian art. Started in 1997 as an art gallery at the American Bible Society building in New York City, the museum became an independent entity on May 12, 2005.

The museum aimed to become a nationally recognized center of expertise on art and the Bible, while maintaining a secular distance from its subject. Although it grew out of the American Bible Society and was subsidized by that organization, it was not a religious institution and took no stand on religion itself. Rather, MOBIA hoped to open dialogue on a subject it considered under-explored, the influence of religion on art, by providing exhibits and educational programs to visitors.

In April 2015, the museum announced it would be closing in June after failing to find a new space. The institution had been paying only $1 in rent on its space in the headquarters of the American Bible Society, but the latter's impending move to Philadelphia made the continuation of that arrangement impossible. [1]

Building

The Museum of Biblical Art was located on the second floor of the American Bible Society's headquarters building at the corner of Broadway and 61st Street, between Columbus Circle and Lincoln Center on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York. The main 2,500-square-foot (230 m2) exhibition space was created after extensive renovation, and the museum also included an 1,100-square-foot (100 m2) education center for lectures, concerts, and children's activities. Principal architects were Randall Goya and Sara Lopergolo, of G&L Architects of New York.

In 2015, due to the intention of the American Bible Society to sell their New York building and move to Philadelphia, MOBIA announced that it was seeking a new location, [2] but the search was unsuccessful and the museum closed permanently on June 14, 2015.

Exhibitions

The Museum of Biblical Art presented four exhibitions per year which highlight the changing relationship of faith — whether express, implied, or absent — to art.

MOBIA's first exhibition was "Coming Home!: Self-taught Artists, the Bible, and the American South", featuring ninety-five works by seventy-three artists. The exhibit explored the way the Bible, in the context of evangelical Christianity, has influenced the subject matter, meaning and function of art made by Southern self-taught artists.

Later exhibitions included "The Next Generation: Contemporary Expressions of Faith", which dealt with contemporary religious art and artists, in partnership with Christians in the Visual Arts, and "Let There Be Light: Oil Lamps from the Holy Land", exploring the uses of clay oil lamps through history, on loan from the Bible Lands Museum in Jerusalem. [3]

Later, "On Eagles' Wings: The King James Bible Turns 400" explored the tumultuous origins and dramatic impact of a literary masterpiece widely considered one of the most celebrated books in the English-speaking world. The exhibition explored the historic context in which the King James Bible was translated and published, beginning with an examination of its predecessors, most notably the Bishops' Bible sponsored by Queen Elizabeth I in 1568 and singled out as the model that the translators commissioned by King James were to follow as closely as possible. The exhibition presented the touchstones of the translation process, examining how this work was and continues to be inspirational for various audiences over time. [4]

"The Land of Light and Promise: 50 Years Painting Jerusalem and Beyond, Ludwig Blum (1891-1974)" showcased that artist. Known as the "Painter of Jerusalem," Ludwig Blum immigrated to Palestine in 1923 from what is now the Czech Republic. A veteran of the First World War and an academically trained painter, Blum set about depicting the Middle East, most notably the Holy Land, both through vast topographical scenes and through small-scale street and marketplace scenes. He portrayed Palestine, and later Israel, with an intimacy borne of his love for his adopted homeland and its people, and he painted Jewish, Christian, and Muslim sites alike, largely devoid of religious overtones.

Other exhibitions included "Walls Speak: The Narrative Art of Hildreth Meière", "Finding Comfort in Difficult Times: A Selection of Soldiers' Bibles" and "Louis C. Tiffany and the Art of Devotion".

For its final exhibit, the museum drew the largest crowds in its history for a show of 15th century sculpture by Donatello, Brunelleschi, Nanni di Banco, Luca della Robbia and others from the Florence Cathedral, pieces never before seen in the United States. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jerusalem</span> City in the Southern Levant

Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the oldest cities in the world, and is considered holy to the three major Abrahamic religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Both the State of Israel and the State of Palestine claim Jerusalem as their capital city. Israel maintains its primary governmental institutions there, and the State of Palestine ultimately foresees it as its seat of power. Neither claim is widely recognized internationally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New-York Historical Society</span> Museum and library in New York City

The New-York Historical Society is an American history museum and library in New York City, along Central Park West between 76th and 77th Streets, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The society was founded in 1804 as New York's first museum. It presents exhibitions, public programs, and research that explore the history of New York and the nation. The New-York Historical Society Museum & Library has been at its present location since 1908. The granite building was designed by York & Sawyer in a classic Roman Eclectic style. The building is a designated New York City landmark. A renovation, completed in November 2011, made the building more accessible to the public, provided space for an interactive children's museum, and facilitated access to its collections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Israel Museum</span> National museum of Israel in Jerusalem

The Israel Museum is an art and archaeology museum in Jerusalem. It was established in 1965 as Israel's largest and foremost cultural institution, and one of the world's leading encyclopaedic museums. It is situated on a hill in the Givat Ram neighborhood of Jerusalem, adjacent to the Bible Lands Museum, the National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel, the Knesset, the Israeli Supreme Court, and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design Art school in Jerusalem, Israel

Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design is a public college of design and art located in Jerusalem. Established in 1906 by Jewish painter and sculptor Boris Schatz, Bezalel is Israel's oldest institution of higher education and is considered the most prestigious art school in the country. It is named for the Biblical figure Bezalel, son of Uri, who was appointed by Moses to oversee the design and construction of the Tabernacle. The art created by Bezalel's students and professors in the early 1900s is considered the springboard for Israeli visual arts in the 20th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Biblical archaeology</span> Archaeological sub-discipline

Biblical archaeology is an academic school and a subset of Biblical studies and Levantine archaeology. Biblical archaeology studies archaeological sites from the Ancient Near East and especially the Holy Land, from biblical times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palestine Exploration Fund</span> British society founded in 1865

The Palestine Exploration Fund is a British society based in London. It was founded in 1865, shortly after the completion of the Ordnance Survey of Jerusalem by Royal Engineers of the War Department. The Fund is the oldest known organization in the world created specifically for the study of the Levant region, also known as Palestine. Often simply known as the PEF, its initial objective was to carry out surveys of the topography and ethnography of Ottoman Palestine – producing the PEF Survey of Palestine. Its remit was considered to fall between an expeditionary survey and military intelligence gathering. There was also strong religious interest from Christians; William Thomson, Archbishop of York, was the first President of the PEF.

Archie Rand is an American artist from Brooklyn, New York, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Selah Merrill</span> American clergyman (1837–1909)

Selah Merrill was an American Congregationalist clergyman. He served as the American consul in Jerusalem.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ze'ev Raban</span>

Ze’ev Raban (22 September 1890 – 19 January 1970), born Wolf Rawicki (Ravitzki), was a leading painter, decorative artist, and industrial designer of the Bezalel school style, and was one of the founders of the Israeli art world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palestinian art</span>

Palestinian art is a term used to refer to artwork either originating from historic Palestine, as well as paintings, posters, installation art, costumes, and handcrafts produced by Palestinian artists in modern and contemproary times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abel Pann</span>

Abel Pann (1883–1963) was a Russian-born Jewish painter and print-maker who settled in the Talpiot neighborhood of Jerusalem in the early twentieth century and taught at the Bezalel Academy of Art under Boris Schatz.

The Yeshiva University Center for Israel Studies reflects the longstanding relationship between Yeshiva University and Israel. It supports research, conferences, publications, museum exhibitions, public programs and educational opportunities that enhance awareness and study of Israel in all of its complexities. The center is led by Director Steven Fine, Professor of Jewish History at Yeshiva University, and Associate Director Joshua Karlip, Professor of Jewish History at Yeshiva University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Derfner Judaica Museum</span> Museum in New York City

The Derfner Judaica Museum is a cultural and educational center that provides exhibitions relating to Jewish history and contemporary Jewish culture. The museum is located in the Jacob Reingold Pavilion on the grounds of The Hebrew Home at Riverdale in the Riverdale neighborhood of the Bronx in New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steven Fine</span>

Steven Fine is a cultural historian specializing in 'Judaism in the Greco-Roman World' and a professor at Yeshiva University.

The Green Collection, later known as the Museum Collection, is one of the world's largest private collection of rare biblical texts and artifacts, made up of more than 40,000 biblical antiquities assembled by the Green family, founders of the American retail chain Hobby Lobby.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Visual arts in Israel</span>

Visual arts in Israel or Israeli art refers to visual art or plastic art created by Israeli artists or Jewish painters in the Yishuv. Visual art in Israel encompasses a wide spectrum of techniques, styles and themes reflecting a dialogue with Jewish art throughout the ages and attempts to formulate a national identity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jewish paper cutting</span>

Jewish paper cutting is a traditional form of Jewish folk art made by cutting figures and sentences in paper or parchment. It is connected with various customs and ceremonies, and associated with holidays and family life. Paper cuts often decorated ketubbot, Mizrahs, and ornaments for festive occasions. Paper cutting was practiced by Jewish communities in both Eastern Europe and North Africa and the Middle East for centuries and has seen a revival in modern times in Israel and elsewhere.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ludwig Blum</span> Israeli painter

Ludwig Blum was a Moravian-born Israeli painter. He emigrated to Israel in 1923, as part of the Third Aliyah, and became known as "the painter of Jerusalem".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tobi Kahn</span> American painter and sculptor (born 1952)

Tobi Kahn is an American painter and sculptor. Kahn lives and works in New York City and is on the faculty at the School of Visual Arts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Françoise Grossen</span>

Françoise Grossen is a textile artist known for her braided and knotted rope sculptures. She lives and works in New York City. Grossen’s work has been acquired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; the Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC; and the State Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg, Russia.

References

  1. "NYC Biblical Art Museum to Close in June". The New York Times. April 29, 2015.
  2. Smith, Jennifer (18 February 2015). "Museum of Biblical Art Loses Its Landlord". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 22 February 2015.
  3. BLMJ.org
  4. Scherer, Barrymore Laurence (3 August 2011). "Four Centuries of Love and Suffering for the Word". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  5. Kennedy, Randy (28 April 2015). "Museum of Biblical Art to Close, Despite Recent Crowds". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 May 2015.

40°46′13″N73°58′58″W / 40.770243°N 73.982741°W / 40.770243; -73.982741