MURAL of CYCLES | The Jewish People

"Six out of Seven," oil on canvas, 24" x 30", 2001. Collection of Rabbis Jonathan and Beth Singer

In a very general way, the mural also commemorates the history of the Jews. 

Starting with Genesis – the creation of light, and of man – on the left, the landscape in the first panel suggests wilderness and wanderings without clear paths; however an island recalls the “outstretched hand” which brought the Egyptian Jews out of captivity, by means of the parting of the Red Sea waters and the path to Mt. Sinai.  

Past Sinai, and representing the Holy Land, the barren landscape becomes green in the central panel, while landscaped terraces and a tent nod to the transition from nomadic to agricultural life, including the “goodly” tents of Jacob. 

Finally, the wanderings of the Diaspora (suggested by the many paths behind the Huppah), leads eventually to the new Promised Land, in this case the large cities of east coast America, with their skyscrapers and steamer docks in the distance.  The later migration of the Jews from East Coast to West is suggested by the city across the bridge, reminiscent of Seattle and promising a more balanced integration of Man and Nature, an ideal place to commemorate The Jewish Year.