Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem

November 3, 2017 - March 18, 2018

Woman’s wrap (chader) and face veil. Herat, Afghanistan, mid-20th century. Cotton wrap, netted veil with silk-thread embroidery. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Purchased through the gift of Dr. Willy and Charlotte Reber, Switzerland, B77.0466, B71.0526. Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem by Mauro Magliani
Woman’s outer cloak (‘abaya). Baghdad, Iraq, late 1920s or early 1930s. Silk with gilt metal thread. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Gift of Ayala Dabby, Ramat Gan, from the bequest of and in memory of her aunt Jane Shasha, Baghdad, and her daughter Rosa Dabby, London, B95.1393. Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem by Mauro Magliani
Woman’s coat (detail). Bukhara, Uzbekistan, late 19th century. Brocaded silk, ikat-dyed silk and cotton lining. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, B64.12.4226. Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem by Mauro Magliani
Married woman’s ensemble. Salonika, Ottoman Greece, early 20th century. Silk, brocaded and ribbed, cotton lace. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Gift of Esther Jeanne Aelion Ben-Susan, Paris, in memory of the mother Gracia; Gift of Flora and Shlomo Perahia, Claire and Robert Saltiel, Paris, in memory of their mother Rivka Perahia née Cohen; Gift of Vicki Sciaky, Tel Aviv, in memory of her husband Haim Joseph and her son Joseph Haim Sciaky; Gift of the Saloniki Jewry Research Center, Tel Aviv, B78.0191, B00.1322, B79.0666, B81.0780. Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem by Mauro Magliani
“Great Dress” (berberisca or al kesswa l’kebira) (detail). Fez, Morocco, early 20th century. Silk velvet, gift metal cords, braided ribbons, and embroidered tulle. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Gift of Perla Ben-Soussan, France; Gift of Armand Amselem, France, B66.1099, 1551, B71.0267, B79.0460. Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem by Mauro Magliani
Hasidic Rebbe’s Sabbath Coat. Jerusalem, 21st century. Silk, synthetic thread, and appliqué synthetic velvet bands; compound weave belt. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Gift of Josef Grunwald, Ashdod, B09.1523, B09.1540. Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem by Mauro Magliani
Wedding Sari. Bene Israel Community, India, mid-20th century. Brocaded silk, silver and silk thread, The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. B84.0629. Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem by Mauro Magliani
Prayer shawl (tallit). Germany, 18th century. Damask and brocade silk, and gilt metal-cord lace. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Gift of Jakob Michael, New York, in memory of his wife, Erna Sondheimer-Michael, B68.0178. Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem by Mauro Magliani

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Woman’s wrap (chader) and face veil. Herat, Afghanistan, mid-20th century. Cotton wrap, netted veil with silk-thread embroidery. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Purchased through the gift of Dr. Willy and Charlotte Reber, Switzerland, B77.0466, B71.0526. Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem by Mauro Magliani

The first comprehensive U.S. exhibition drawn from The Israel Museum’s world-renowned collection of Jewish costumes showcases over 100 articles of clothing from the eighteenth to twentieth centuries. The extraordinary range of textile designs and clothing illuminates the story of how diverse global cultures have thrived, interacted, and inspired each other for centuries.

Woman’s coat. Bukhara, Uzbekistan, late 19th century. Brocaded silk, ikat-dyed silk and cotton lining. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, B64.12.4226. Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem by Mauro Magliani

Clothing is intended to cover our bodies, but it also uncovers. To what extent is our choice of dress freely made, and how do our surroundings affect our decisions? The variety of costumes displayed in this exhibition attests to the diversity of Jewish communities around the globe. In many cases, the clothes worn by Jews were similar or even identical to those worn by non-Jewish neighbors, although at times special features distinguished them from the dominant culture.

This exhibition invites viewers to consider the language of clothing in all its complexity. Though this language can disclose information about gender, age, background, and custom, some important meanings remain vague and fluid. Clothing may accentuate or conceal; it may be transitory, but it may also be ageless and universal. These garments, dating primarily to the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, are drawn from the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, the repository of the most comprehensive collection of Jewish costume in the world. Its holdings provide a unique testimony to bygone communities, to forms of dress and craft that no longer exist, and to a sense of beauty that still has the power to enthrall.

#FashioningJewishDress

Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem is organized by The Israel Museum, Jerusalem.

The Israel Museum’s curatorial team includes Curator in Charge, Daisy Raccah-Djivre; Exhibition Curator, Efrat Assaf-Shapira; Scientific Advisors, No’am Bar’am Ben-Yossef and Esther Juhasz; and Head of Traveling Exhibitions, Sivan Eran-Levian. Claudia J. Nahson, Morris & Eva Feld Curator at the Jewish Museum, is Supervising Curator for the New York presentation. The exhibition has been designed by Leslie Gill Architect. The exhibition graphics were designed by Topos Graphics.

Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, is made possible by The Coby Foundation, Ltd., Friedman Family Foundation, S. Rothschild & Co., Kobi Halperin, Barbara and Richard Lane, the Peter Jay Sharp Exhibition Fund, the Joan Rosenbaum Exhibition Fund, and the Alfred J. Grunebaum & Ruth Grunebaum Sondheimer Memorial Fund.

In the Press

"Each dress has a story behind it, and each is a work of art."

— The Jewish Week

"A metaphysical poetry stirs in these clothes."

— The Wall Street Journal

Installation Views

Installation view of the exhibition Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. November 3, 2017 - March 18, 2018. Photo by: Jason Mandella
Installation view of the exhibition Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. November 3, 2017 - March 18, 2018. Photo by: Jason Mandella
Installation view of the exhibition Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. November 3, 2017 - March 18, 2018. Photo by: Jason Mandella
Installation view of the exhibition Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. November 3, 2017 - March 18, 2018. Photo by: Jason Mandella
Installation view of the exhibition Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. November 3, 2017 - March 18, 2018. Photo by: Jason Mandella
Installation view of the exhibition Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. November 3, 2017 - March 18, 2018. Photo by: Jason Mandella
Installation view of the exhibition Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. November 3, 2017 - March 18, 2018. Photo by: Jason Mandella
Installation view of the exhibition Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. November 3, 2017 - March 18, 2018. Photo by: Jason Mandella
Installation view of the exhibition Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. November 3, 2017 - March 18, 2018. Photo by: Jason Mandella
Installation view of the exhibition Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. November 3, 2017 - March 18, 2018. Photo by: Jason Mandella

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Installation view of the exhibition Veiled Meanings: Fashioning Jewish Dress, from the Collection of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. November 3, 2017 - March 18, 2018. Photo by: Jason Mandella