The Jewish Museum Of Florida Presents "Max Miller: Final Mourner's Kaddish: 333 Days in Painting" Opening Jan. 31

Cuban Hebrew Congregation, Miami Beach, FL,

Watercolor, 2005

After the death of his father, Murray A. Miller, artist Max Miller chose to undertake the custom of saying Kaddish, the Jewish prayer of mourning. This prayer, exalting the name of God, is recited in the presence of a congregation daily for eleven months. 


Miller, who grew up Orthodox with Yiddish as his first language said, "The Kaddish provided me with time to grieve and reflect on spiritual aspects of life and death, and because of this I felt compelled to create images that captured my response to what I was experiencing." 


The artist's grief provided the inspiration for a vivid, moving and cathartic account of his experience of honoring his father through the daily recitation of the Kaddish.


As an historic record and for personal reasons, Miller created a watercolor of each the synagogues he visited during the 333 days of saying Kaddish in New York, Vermont, Ohio and Florida (including Congregation Beth Jacob, that is now the Jewish Museum of Florida). 

Beth Jacob, Miami Beach, FL  

Watercolor, 2005

The 50 vibrant watercolors, considered by the artist to be a coherent unit, are painted on paper. As a whole, the collection suggests the diversity of the social and religious settings that Miller frequented, as well as the breadth of personal transformation and learning he experienced over the course of those eleven months.


Though the form varies, humanity's expression of mourning transcends time, society, and culture. The extraordinary body of work that ensued is an intimate document of Miller's faith, observance and the Jewish community. The ultimate unity of the Jewish people is found in these remarkable works.


Each image is distinct in its orientation, composition and focus. Depictions range from exterior to interior, from human to architectural portraits, from limited to wide-ranging color schemes. The richness of his color and line inscribes the vitality of faith and continuance of ritual and tradition. The exhibition also includes a stunning portrait of Miller's father, against a silver leaf background, an image of iconic and descriptive power that sets the tone for the show.

Kehilath Jeshurun, Upper East Side, New York City  

Watercolor, 2005

Accompanying the images are the artist's commentaries, based on his thoughts, feelings and experiences with those he met during this pursuit. While honoring the Jewish tradition of memorializing a parent, Miller came to learn a great deal about his father and their shared heritage.

Though the daily ritual of saying Kaddish has formally ended for Miller, bringing this project to fruition provides an opportunity for those within the Jewish community, and for those in other communities, of all ages, to witness and honor the tradition of the Mourner's Kaddish, and to reflect on their own humanity and spiritual journeys.


This exhibition by Max Miller originated at the Yeshiva University Museum in New York City and is sponsored by the New York Foundation for the Arts.  


Max Miller: Final Mourner's Kaddish - 333 Days in Painting will be on display at the Jewish Museum Of Florida January 31-May 13, 2012.

Max Miller

Max Miller is known for his abstract paintings that embrace color and line, as well as his figurative paintings of human and animal subjects. He has had exhibitions in New York City and throughout the East Coast. He received his BFA from Rhode Island School of Design and MFA from Yale University. He has been awarded numerous fellowships, including a New York Foundation for the Arts, Guggenheim, National Endowment for the Arts and two Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grants.


The Jewish Museum of Florida is housed in two adjacent lovingly restored historic buildings on South Beach that were once synagogues for Miami Beach's first Jewish congregation. The Museum's focal point is its core exhibit MOSAIC: Jewish Life in Florida  - 1763 to the Present and temporary history and art exhibits that change periodically. Currently on display: Wooden Synagogues of Poland and the Florida Connection through March 18, 2012. A Collections & Research Center, several films, Timeline Wall of Jewish history, Museum Store filled with unique items and Bessie's Bistro complete the experience for visitors of all ages and backgrounds.


Accredited by the American Association of Museums, the Museum is located at 301 Washington Avenue, Miami Beach 33139, and is open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., except Mondays, Civil and Jewish holidays. Admission: Adults/$6; Seniors/$5; Families/$12; Members and children under 6/Always Free; Saturdays/Free. For information: 305-672-5044 or www.jewishmuseum.com.


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Hanukkah Shopping Made Easy by the Jewish Museum of Florida

Visit the Orovitz Museum Store at the Jewish Museum of Florida for all your holiday shopping needs! 

All items are available for purchase online at www.jewishmuseum.com/store.html.

From dreidels and menorahs to dolls and games, the store carries a wide array of Hanukkah gifts, plus an assortment of jewelry and Judaica not found anywhere else!

The Jewish Museum of Florida is located at 301 Washington Avenue, Miami Beach, Florida 33139. Hours of operation are: Tuesdays through Sundays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; closed on Mondays and Civil and Jewish Holidays. Bessie's Bistro & the Orovitz Museum Store are closed on Saturdays.

The museum is housed in two former synagogues that served the first congregation on Miami Beach. The primary building is a restored 1936 Art Deco building with a copper dome, marble bimah and 80 stained glass windows. The second is the original 1929 shul. The skylighted Bessie's Bistro eatery connects the two buildings.

Don't miss the permanent exhibit, "Mosaic: Jewish Life in Florida," as well as "Wooden Synagogues Of Poland & The Florida Connection," (on display through March 18, 2012) and "Final Mourner's Kaddish: 333 Days In Painting" by Max Miller (on display Jan. 31-May 13, 2012) . For a complete list of exhibits please visit the museum's website. 

For more information please call 305-672-5044 or visit www.jewishmuseum.com. 

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"Wooden Synagogues of Poland & The Florida Connection" Exhibit Now Open at the Jewish Museum of Florida

Gombin synagogue model

The Jewish Museum of Florida's newest public exhibition tells the stories of Polish shtetls (small towns in Eastern Europe with a sizable Jewish population) and some of their Jewish families who settled in Florida. 


The exhibit runs through March 18, 2012.


The genesis of the exhibit was the donation by Englishman Peter Maurice of 10 models of 17th-18th century Polish wooden synagogues. He researched and built the 1/40th-scale models  from 2003-2007.


Jews have lived in Poland for more than 1,000 years. About 80 percent of the American Jewish community has origins in Poland. That is not surprising, as we know that this was the center of the European Jewish world with more than three million Jews before the Holocaust. The focus of life for these Polish Jews was their synagogue. For 400 years prior to World War II, the Jews of the shtetls built approximately 1,000 wooden synagogues, because timber was plentiful. According to some art historians, the wooden synagogues of Poland, with their painted and carved interiors, were a truly original and organic manifestation of artistic expression-the only real Jewish folk art in history.


These beautiful and unique 17th and 18th century Polish wooden synagogues no longer exist. During World War II, the Nazis burned to the ground those still standing. Some synagogues built in the 19th and 20th centuries have been found in Poland and what is now Lithuania and are in deteriorated conditions.


This exhibit conveys the enormity of what was lost during World War II. Poland was the place where the Nazis built most of the death camps. This is the place where most of Europe's Jews perished.


The Museum's founding executive director and chief curator, Marcia Jo Zerivitz, said, "While we have various models in our collections, from a kosher bakery in Lakeland to a model of our very own Beth Jacob synagogue, this donation is so unique in that it brings a taste of old Polish Jewish life to modern day Miami Beach. So many Floridian Jews have a family history from Polish shtetls. These beautiful, unique models evoke memories of our heritage. When you look at them, you can almost hear the davening (praying) from within the walls and recall the pain of suffering of all Eastern European Jews from the period of the Holocaust when the Nazis destroyed these structures and most of the Jewish people. Through the creation of these models, Peter Maurice ensured that an element of Jewish life in Poland would not be forgotten. And we are so honored that Maurice chose the Jewish Museum of Florida from all the museums in the world to tell this compelling, significant story."

Dombek Family, Sosnowice, Poland, c.1910

Many Floridian Jews have a family history from Polish shtetls. To make the Florida connection, the Jewish Museum of Florida invited Jewish families to submit material evidence of their Polish roots for this exhibition. The curatorial staff researched each of the towns represented by the wooden synagogue models and by the families, so the story includes photographs, artifacts and documents from more than 30 towns and nearly 40 families.


The Jewish Museum of Florida on South Beach is housed in two adjacent lovingly restored historic buildings that were once synagogues for Miami Beach's first Jewish congregation. The focal point of the Museum is its core exhibit "MOSAIC: Jewish Life in Florida 1763 to the Present" and temporary history and art exhibits that change periodically. Current exhibits are "Seeking Justice: The Leo Frank Case Revisited" through August 14 and "Isaac Bashevis Singer & His Artists" through August 28. A Collections & Research Center, several films, Timeline Wall of Jewish history, Museum Store and Bessie's Bistro complete the experience for visitors of all ages and backgrounds.


Accredited by the American Association of Museums, the Jewish Museum of Florida is located at 301 Washington Avenue, South Beach and is open daily 10am-5pm, except Mondays and Civil and Jewish holidays. Admission: Adults/$6; Seniors/$5; Families/$12; Members and children under 6/Always Free; Saturdays/Free. For information call 305-672-5044 or visit www.jewishmuseum.com.


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