Congratulations! You are one of 304,805 people who will represent a letter in the People’s Torah. Your letter is ר (Reish) which is located in Genesis 9:22.
This was the email message I received today after participating in the museum’s interactive display where guests are encouraged to contribute an image of their hand that will be part of The People’s Torah. My hand represents reish. How uncanny is it that the symbol for reish looks like a mirrored “r” for Rikki.
The building, designed by renowned modern architect Daniel Libeskind opened to much pomp and circumstance on June 2008. Surprisingly enough, I’ve never had a chance to visit the museum until today.
Upon arriving at the museum, one immediately notices Liebeskind’s “blue steel cube” rising from the west side of the former PG&E substation built in 1907. The conflict created by this modern structure against a classic, ornate brick facade was what Libeskind was after. And while Berlin’s version of the Jewish Museum paid homage to the victims of the holocaust, this recent addition to San Francisco’s rich architecture is meant to “celebrate the Jews and Jewish life in the spirit of the west coast”. Conforming to “Jewish law”, a mezuzah was affixed at the doorway of the museum.
Entering the museum, one will immediately notice the PaRDes wall, an installation incorporating an abstract representation of a Jewish acronym. The interior space is quite impressive and once again, Liebeskind’s space serves as a symbolic reference of many Jewish concepts. It’s interesting to note that of the symbolic references that Liebeskind used, the most notable is “L’Chaim” (To Life). Here he juxtaposes the former substation’s role of providing life and energy to San Franciscans after the 1906 earthquake and the museum’s new role of engaging the public with Jewish traditions and culture.
Within the “blue steel cube” is an exhibition space where they currently display Black Sabbath: The Secret Musical History of Black-Jewish Relations is a musical journey through a unique slice of recording history–the Black-Jewish musical encounter from the 1930s to the 1960s. The space itself is quite stark. Large volumed ceilings and walls at extremely acute dramatic angles accentuate 36 diamond shaped skylights. The number, 36, is twice that of the Hebrew word for “alive” which has a numerical value of 18. It is customary in Jewish tradition to give in gifts or donations in multiples of 18 as an expression of blessing for long life therefore 36 could be construed as an extremely long life (perhaps).
We enjoyed the exhibits most notably Maira Kalman’s “Various Illuminations”. But of all the current exhibits on display, my hands down favorite would have to be the “As It is Written: Project 304, 805″. Unfortunately, the soferet (female scribe) wasn’t there this afternoon. It was quite mesmerizing to watch the video of the soferet as she wrote the Torah. “It’s soothing and I’m at peace when I sit down and write the Torah”, says the scribe. If you have never seen such a display, I would highly encourage you to do so.
Our final stop was at the digital interactive display of the Torah. I became one of many that scanned my hand and added it as one of the letters in the Torah (see image below). Oh and about my letter being reish? What does it mean? Although the letter reish is situated close to the end of the alef-beit, “its primary meaning is “head” or “beginning.”
Overall, the visit was quite enjoyable. Melissa and I love walking around museums and this was no different than the rest. If you’re ever curious to see the People’s Torah, you can see my contribution here. The People’s Torah is a navigable, three-dimensional text of the Five Books of Moses, to be written collectively by people all over the world. It is an interactive installation and net art project by Cabengo and Studio Mobile, commissioned by and installed at the Contemporary Jewish Museum, San Francisco for the exhibition, As It is Written: Project 304,805. Go check it out. It’s only a $10 entrance fee and it’s a great way to learn about a different culture.
Ciao!
P.S. After your visit, check out a couple of cool places just around the corner – Beard Papa (cream puffs) and Schoggi (yummy hot chocolate). Tell ‘em I sent you.
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