MY HAIR

MY HAIR

 - Joy Krauthammer

On July 26th, I went to the hair beautician, and with Aviva visiting and by my side, Mike cut off a few inches of long, wavy hair from my head that had been growing since Marcel, z'l, died 18 months earlier. For me, cutting my hair off at this time was symbolically a time when I could let go more of what I had been processing during grieving. The release was important for my journey.

I had kept my hair short for decades. Prior to marriage, my wavy dark brown locks had been longer, about the length it had just grown to be now. Long enough to be in a healthy pony tail, and when in braids, long enough that I was mistaken for a Indian princess. (I introduced my tanned self as "Princess Brown Bead" when I was hitch-hiking across a reservation.) My hair was long enough to put it up while swimming; to put it up on top of my head and take it away from my face; to change my look for a special occasion, like performing on stage in New Mexico last month, or visiting dear old friends in New York the month before.

In December 1988, I had my hair 'permed' into curls, for the first and most likely, last time in my life. At that time, six months after Marcel's z'l, twice done brain surgery, I needed a drastic change-- something to feel, following the terror that I had gone through with my husband for the prior six months, as he survived surgeries, being on life support, comatose for a few months, and then cancer treatments. 

I needed to shake free of what had been, to seriously transition over to something else. That was before I was receiving Aliyahs at Torah, or taking Mikvehs for spiritual purifications, actions that I do now.  Drinking was not my ‘thing’, so how to transform?  Was with MY HAIR, I decided. Hair surely has changed its way of manifesting on my body as I have lived and matured, and ‘aged.’

I wanted a ritual to cut my hair, since growing my hair longer than I ever do, had been my ritual. Prior to that it was for decades-- my ritual to cut it short. It was from the time of loss and mourning that I let it grow. A time to separate out on my own body, differences in my life. I had also lost weight and that was a sign of health.  My hair had grown a lot of grey from stress, and aging.  I was proud of the grey as a sign of sage-ing, of wisdom. I wanted the grey to show and not to dye it as others had freely suggested to me.

My end of 18 months of mourning ritual became for me, time to have my hair cut (and for my big birthday). Although I had imagined for my celebration, an adult female Upshernish, no other friends were invited to participate in this ritual with me, and my beautician and my visiting daughter.  I finally gave away the barbie type of doll with long hair I had purchased for my Simcha, so that friends could first practice on her hair.

 2007

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Ceci n’est pas une cantaloupe

ME and MAGRITTE

or

FOOD AS ART, FOOD AS THOUGHT

February 2007

- Joy Krauthammer

 Ceci n’est pas une cantaloupe

or

NOT MILK

art and image by Joy Krauthammer ©

In the 'Sixties', when I was a Queens College art major, an assignment in ceramics class was to create a "pop art" piece. (I made a clay hand eating "Pac Man"--it crumbled in the '94 Northridge earthquake.) Today's pop culture includes creating "edible art", i.e. cookie cutter red melon hearts on sticks.

For the Tu B'Shvat holiday of appreciating The Source of All BlesSings in nature's garden, I chose a challenge for myself to create edible art. I did not even need to find my old sixties wood cutting carving tools, as the women at the Chabad of Northridge were learning to sculpt fruit for the Jewish holiday and tools were provided. Not to be wasteful as I sculpted with my sharp knife--creating a flower from my whole fruit, I ate from the rings of melon rind and the cantaloupe carving shreds. Ala Michelangelo's marble sculpture David, I ate all that 'was not' marble flower.

I revealed for myself that this creative experience was a metaphor for the carving away from my life, all that need not be present at this time.* To keep the joy in Joy.

And with the "Jewish month of Adar arriving, joy increases". Talmud, Taanit 29a.

Purim in Adar is full of fun, pranks and reversals. Purim is joyous because of the miracles from when the Jews were saved in Shushan, and those who wanted Jews killed were themselves hung (Haman) and murdered. G*d's hiddenness was revealed.

During Adar we have a unique opportunity to draw down Divine energy into our lives, by doing good deeds that are imbued with joy, as we "Serve G*d With Joy."

In less than one week, it is Rosh Chodesh Adar, a woman's holiday. What I have created is a woman's feminine image of how, in G*d's image, she nurtures G*d's children. When a baby cries, yearning for mother's milk, a 'let down' occurs. When I yearn for G*d, there is a flow of 'milk' from above. G*d's name, Shadai, translates as breast. From the nipple of Shadai we are nurtured.

Being inspired from the current LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) exhibit, MAGRITTE AND CONTEMPORARY ART, THE TREACHERY OF IMAGES, I present you with my inspired version of imitation Magritte.

Rene' Magritte (1898-1967) used popular culture as inspiration and his images influenced artists over the past fifty years. Magritte had used detailed realism and good taste and craftsmanship, but in 1948, around the time of my birth, he deviated. 
"He was greeted with total incomprehension." - LACMA

 I offer you something incomprehensible, so I must offer also an explanation, which I would prefer not to have to do, but I do want you to understand my creation and my deviating humor.

"Surrealism, shaped by emerging theories of perception, included the "uncanny" and contradictory conditions of reality. As a Belgian surrealist in 1926, Magritte placed objects in unusual contexts or with a play of unusual words or phrases, thus giving them new and surprising meanings." 

A few years later, Magritte decided that he would rather reveal the hidden relationships between objects.

To me, discovering the hiddenness of G*d's existance means to reveal G*d.

Celebrating Tu B'Shvat, I discover G*d's hiddenness and infinite potential in planting a seed, or a dormant barren branch which when nourished, will transform into a fruit tree.



Magritte approached images and language in a way that has interested me. He is most famous for his word-and-image painting, The Treachery of Images. "Below a realistic image of a pipe, Magritte has written Ceci n'est pas une pipe--meaning 'this is not a pipe' because it is only an image of a pipe. This simple phrase emphasizes the central contradiction of representation, the fact that the painting does not contain a pipe, but merely the image of one." - LACMA

Magritte's titles of paintings have no connection to the images because the painting image is not the thing itself.

I find fascinating, the interpretation within communication, and reality versus illusion in disconnected issues. I explore this in my carved cantaloupe.

With the Magritte show in town at LACMA, I was being funny, or thought that I was being funny. Maybe my fruit photo is NOT FUNNY.

I thought that because my piece (detail or cropping of carved cantaloupe) looked more like a petalled breast nipple, I have titled my sculpted cantaloupe, NOT MILK because it is a play on the GOT MILK art ad campaign. Because it is a fruit--I believe it will not give milk.

Gee, maybe the cantaloupe WILL GIVE MILK.

Guys on TV (ad art) try to get milk shakes out of shaking cows.

I thought my photo could be considered sensuous so I have mostly refrained from sending it to Orthodox people and people I don't know well, censoring myself, so not to be sexually inappropriate with my fruit.

Maybe title the nippled fruit, NO FUN, because the joy is removed by my needing to explain my joke. Maybe the joke is on myself, whatever that means. But no one is laughing with me, so that is sad. 
In Adar we must transform darkness to light, so I transform sad into JOY. There! With Adar, here I come! Enjoy the image of the sculpted fruit  NOT MILK.

At the Magritte exhibit, I overheard people who did not understand the humor of some other artists' adjacent images. Should I have left them in the 'dark'? I explained what I knew about the image dialogue of other contemporary conceptual artists.

Do you think there is any place that would appreciate my 'artistic' 'beyond' sense of humor? Maybe a La Leche magazine? A billboard?

Is there any place that wants this commentary on fruit of the vine? NOT MILK  or G*d's gift? Adar is coming

I would like to contribute my cantaloupe to LACMA'S Magritte exhibit to join the other adjacent relevant contemporary conceptual artists. Any ideas?

Blessings for joy and laughter in the world, and recognizing that our 'milk' flows down from the Source of All BlesSings.

Enjoy,

JOY

* For me, the act of carving away is an act of personal and spiritual transformation, as I have just completed one year of mourning since my husband, z'l, died. For years I had served G*d as a Caregiver Angel Warrior, and now I am reclaiming my artistic self.
Surrealist women artists use their art to reveal personal journeys and transformations.
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Responses to NOT MILK 

JOY wrote:

For Tu B'Shvat, I sculpted away from a cantaloupe, everything not a flower, leaving all that was a flower (ala David by Michelangelo) 
and what did I get? 
And I took a photo of it and it looked simply like something else.

"uh. i don't fully got the "not milk" do you mean cause it's a boob?
 and there's no milk? or is a play on "got milk? the ad art connection 
is confuuuusssinng??? gotta run."

anonymous

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"Aside from it's beauty, I didn't really "get" the photo when I looked at it... but now I do, thanks to you. "Magritte" likeness!!! (Margritte might be too bitter.)"

I

---

"Dear JOY, I'm supposed to understand, BUT I did not get it. Maybe if the NOT MILK were under the photo---but I thought there was a mistake when I got the tiny photo. Had no idea."

Love, G 
~ ~ ~

"Beautiful work."

c

so what is it?

Charles

~ ~ ~

Joy, what is this all about? It all is so mysterious.

Jack  
 ~                          

Ceci n’est pas une cantaloupe

or

NOT MILK
Joy Krauthammer  ©

Cantaloupe & Radishes
carved by Joy Krauthammer  ©
very first time!

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