What to follow in your world.

Memory Objects

Author and artist Melanie Braverman founded the Alzheimer’s Family Support Center of Cape Cod to provide free supportive services for families and individuals living with Alzheimer’s disease/dementia. Books are objects that form — and inform — memory. Recalling how the mother-in-law she cared for was attached to particular books even after she could no longer read, Braverman commissioned and curated a collection of one-of-a-kind books by authors and artists, auctioned off to benefit this nonprofit organization. More about ongoing community services and efforts at alzheimerscapecod.com.

Nursing at Shul

Have you ever nursed in the sanctuary? Where else could you go for a more private, dedicated space? And how child-friendly is your congregation anyway? After visiting a number of synagogues with her baby daughter, Rabbi Maya Resnikoff realized it was hard to know how to handle breastfeeding in any shul the first time you go. If you are breastfeeding or have breastfed, help clue others in by filling out a questionnaire about synagogue experiences. A blog shares the information and includes reviews as well as rabbis’ responses and source texts on the subject of breastfeeding. nursingatshul.wordpress.com

Artificial Stones

How far can nature be imitated? Goldsmith Vered Kaminski, a graduate of the Department of Jewelry and Fashion at Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, Jerusalem, has been working for the past three decades at the intersection of local material environments and processes of construction and deconstruction. She won the 2015 Andy Prize for Contemporary Crafts, and her work is held in collections including the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, and the Jewish Museum in New York. “Vered Kaminski: Artificial Stones,” is up through November 28, 2015 at the Tel Aviv Museum.
tamuseum.org.il/about-the-exhibition/vered-kaminski-artificial-stones

Fair Care at Home

Is your home someone’s workplace? If yes, you’re likely negotiating your role as a domestic employer, and you lack clear guidelines for fair wages and other workplace issues. “We believe that care jobs will be the jobs of the future. It’s in all of our interest to ensure that the quality of these jobs reflects the value and importance of the work. Fairness and quality care go hand-in-hand,” said Ai-jen Poo, Director of National Domestic Workers Alliance. In a joint campaign with Care.com, the largest online marketplace for people looking for support and services in their homes, NDWA asks that employers commit to three practices: fair pay, clear expectations and paid time off. They provide a framework for figuring out the basics, from calculating wages and paid overtime, to transparency and paid sick days and holidays.
care.com/faircarepledge

A Painter Who Begins at the End

A forerunner of Abstract Expressionism in Israel, Hagit Lalo (née Shtriet), traveled in the early 1950s to California, studied art and was awarded a scholarship at the Hans Hoffman School of Fine Art. In 1959 she returned to Israel, where she had two solo exhibitions and participated in several group shows. She died in 1961, 29 years old. A first comprehensive exhibition of her work, closing October 5, 2015, is at the Tel Aviv Museum. tamuseum.org.il

Have You Had the Conversation?

In 2010, columnist Ellen Goodman and a group of media, clergy, and medical professionals gathered to share stories of how people within their own circles had had “good deaths” or “bad deaths.”  From this The Conversation Project began, in an attempt to change American culture by encouraging people to become experts on their own and their loved ones’ wishes for end-of-life care. They’ve also created a starter kit to help parents of seriously ill children who want guidance about having the “conversation” with their children. November 6-15, 2015 has been designated “Conversation Sabbath,” in which clergy of many different faiths will teach about having conversations about one another’s values and wishes on this often elided subject. theconversationproject.org

Franziska Baruch 

Franziska Baruch designed the first emergency currency for the State of Israel and the first Israeli passport in 1948. A pioneer of Hebrew graphic design and Israeli typography, her work is explored in one of the Israel Museum’s 50th anniversary exhibitions. Baruch migrated to Palestine after training in Germany in the 1920s and 1930s, and with others addressed the need to create a new printed language in modern Hebrew — perhaps the most urgent design need in Israel’s first years. “New Types: Three Pioneers of Hebrew Graphic Design,” opens October 20 at the Israel Museum, Jerusalem. imj.org.il

How Much Are You Worth? 

Women still earn 77 cents to every dollar earned by men, and far too many single moms are not granted sick days to care for themselves or their children. “Women’s economic literacy and longterm financial security are pillars of our work,” says Jewish Women International CEO Lori Weinstein. JWI has developed age-specific curricula for mothers and teen daughters as well as college-age women and young professionals. “Know Your Worth,” created in partnership with Hadassah, helps women approaching retirement gain economic security. Workshops include advocacy training for issues that affect all women, such as student loan repayment and strengthening social security. www.jwi.org/fli

“Shared Dining”: Imprisoned Women Make Art

Two years ago, 10 women incarcerated at Connecticut’s York Correctional Institution, calling themselves “the Women of York,” created art inspired by Judy Chicago’s “The Dinner Party.” Using materials repurposed from their everyday lives — such as plastic cutlery and Styrofoam cups — their installation is comprised of 10 place settings, each dedicated to a woman of personal significance to the artist. The work raises questions about politics, gender and incarceration, and reflects on the power of Judy Chicago’s iconic masterwork. Through September 13 at the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, at the Brooklyn Museum where “The Dinner Party” is on permanent exhibition. brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/women_of_york_shared_dining

— compiled by Naomi Danis

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