Visualizing and Exhibiting Jewish Space and History

TLDR: Hornstein this article discusses what it means to Jewish culture and history to weave together architecture, memory, and place, and suggests that even though the examples were mainly related to a Jewish example, they nonetheless reverberate for others and become sparks for deep, personal reflection.

Abstract: “Jewish memory, or what it means to Jewish culture and history to weave together architecture, memory and place” (8). She explains this selection by means of her involvement in previous and ongoing research rather than a result of deliberation and suggests that “even though the examples were mainly – though not always – related to a Jewish example, they nonetheless reverberate for others and become sparks for deep, personal reflection” (8). Although the desire to reach out to a wider audience is understandable, I felt this to be a missed opportunity for a serious, in-depth meditation on the rarely deliberated subject of “Jewish architecture” or “Jewish space.” Woven into the essays, Hornstein makes interesting observations about Jewish notions of space throughout that I hope they will be expanded upon in future publications. A lack of cohesiveness characterizes many aspects of the book, particularly the choice of wildly eclectic case studies. This is both its weakness and strength. Readers are challenged to form their own links between the various examples presented and the wide array of questions raised through them. Although at times making these connections constitutes a long leap of faith, readers will be awarded by encountering a profound, original and fresh understanding of memory, site and their interactions.