Robert Kirschbaum (b.1949)
Dvarim, # 23, #29, # 41, 2015
Aluminum, machined
Courtesy of Mishkan Museum of Art, Ein Harod
Must Know
The Dvaarim series (hebrew for both words and things) is
a blend of many forces: Jewish mysticism, and symbolism, the language of mechanical drawings, abstraction and the act of creation itself. Robert Kirschbaum uses the geometry of the nine square grid and the cube to explore forms reminiscint of hebrew letters, the symbolism of sacred space in the idealized Temple, and of geometry that relates to the creation of the cosmos. In creating these works, this grid is commonly used as a demarcation of sacred space, and is found most prominently as the basis for Ezekiel’s Temple Vision. Following the grid pattern, he then carves out, weighs, transforms, permutes, and depicts forms initially intended to function as discrete objects that are fragments of a more perfect whole.
More Info
Kirschbaum carves each of these cube sculptures from a six inch block of aluminum. With some of these forms he deliberately evokes Jewish symbols: hebrew letter forms, Jewish ritual objects, and references to the Temple and Temple implements. he has created 42 sculptures that reference the 42-letter Name of God. The 42-letter Name refers to one of the secret names of G-d as it was described in the Zohar (The Book of Splendor).
The sculptures derive their forms from hebrew letters, architectural models in Jewish sources and ritual objects. here on exhibition are three of the 42 sculptures from his Dvarim series. One cube refers to the letter “Tav” and to the shape of the entrance portal of the Temple as described in the prophecy of Ezekiel. This form suggests the importance of doorways and portals as metaphors for one’s passage to a more spiritual state of being. Another shape is inspired by the steps used to light the menorah in the Temple. The third shape recalls the tefillin (phylacteries), similar to the shape of the temple. The temple became Richard’s principle symbol for conveying Jewish content and a sense of perfection in the world.
Robert creates works that raise issues of identity, spirituality and abstraction.
