The exhibition Diaspora: Homelands in Exile.
Photographs by Frédéric Brenner is to be seen in the Jewish
Historical Museum Amsterdam from 19 September 2004 to 27 February
2005. Over a period of 24 years the French photographer Frédéric
Brenner (born Paris,1959) travelled the world, chronicling Jewish
life in over forty different countries. His remarkable black and
white photographs provide a pinpoint-sharp picture of the
many-facetted world of the Jewish Diaspora.
Wherever he went, Brenner would look for similarities between Jews.
But instead, he mostly found differences. He photographed Jewish
rituals still in existence, like the women's huts in Ethiopia,
where women withdraw during their menstruation periods, or the
handprint found on doorposts in India, a reminder of the Exodus
from Egypt. But he also recorded a drag queen in South Africa, Jews
selling souvenirs on St Peter's Square in Rome, and a motorbike
club in Florida. Being Jewish, he realized, embraced far more than
the 'authentic' Judaism. The surrounding non-Jewish cultures also
influence Jewish identity in the Diaspora; indeed, it is in
constant flux.
The photographs in the exhibition are classified under such
headings as: 'Mothers of the missing', Argentina; 'Born in
Tunisia'; the 'Marranos', from the Portuguese village of Belmonte.
In the section 'Exile at Home', there is a photo taken in 1983,
showing a boy in his grandfather's jewellery workshop in Yemen.
Quite by chance, Brenner met the boy much later in Israel. He was
now 16 years old, married, and a father. The photo series shows how
newcomers to Israel attempt to retain their own identity, now in
the midst of other Jews; in their former dwelling places it had
been difficult to retain their Jewish identity when surrounded by
non-Jews. Another theme is that of the Sephardi Jews who around
five hundred years ago were driven out of Spain and Portugal.
Settling in such countries as Brazil, France, Greece, Morocco, the
Netherlands, the US and the former Yugoslavia, they still remained
true to Spain - 'Sepharad'.
The JHM has selected certain top photos, also on display in the
exhibition. Serving as introduction to the exhibition is the
Diaporama, in which the photographer himself comments on a number
of his pictures. With his breathtaking images he leads the viewer
through an entire spectrum of time and space - from a community
working on the land in India, to the hypermodern city of Hong
Kong.
The publication Diaspora: Homelands in Exile
(HarperCollins Publishers; Mets & Schilt Uitgevers) accompanies
the exhibition.
Main sponsor exhibition: