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A revived Jewish Museum spotlights the story of Jewish endurance
The object that best explains the Jewish Museum’s new core exhibition isn’t actually there.
Printed on the wall is a photographed section of the first century Arch of Titus, depicting the sacking of Jerusalem in 70 AD. Among the plunder looted by the Romans was the Temple’s seven-branched menorah. This image, carved by conquerors, speaks to a lost homeland and culture. Or it might have, had Jews not proven supremely adaptable.
The rest of the exhibit’s 200 items, ranging from antiquity to this decade, are a testament to how Jews, experiencing millennia of diaspora, suffered, thrived and engaged with their neighbors. As Jewish Museum director James S. Snyder told me, his approach is not to present Jews as separate and elevated, but as a people deeply enmeshed in their global communities, resonating with them while maintaining their sense of self.
The $14.5 million renovation of the third and fourth floors in the Central Park-facing, neo-Gothic mansion built for the German-American Warburg family in 1908, can’t help but tell that story.
Titled “Identity, Culture and Community: Stories from the Collection,” the exhibit is organized thematically and roughly chronologically, beginning with a gallery of Judaica: a handsome Torah ark from Urbino, inscribed in Hebrew and decorated with Italianate flourishes. A Torah scroll destroyed by the British in the American Revolution holds pride of place, while an adjoining gallery, inspired by the forthcoming 250th Anniversary of the United States, boasts personal artifacts like the mezuzah of Continental Army financier Haym Salomon.
Moving away from Torah finials and portraits of prominent Jews, there’s a section dedicated to persecution and remembrance. Hanging there is a selection of intimate portraits by Gertrud Kauders, whose paintings were discovered in the walls of a home outside Prague during a 2018 home renovation. Kauders, an assimilated Czech Jew who was murdered in 1942 in Majdanek, hid them before her deportation.
While this work was discovered decades after her death, it’s in the company of some notable names, and not all of them Jewish. A 1936 Alice Neel painting of a New York City Communist rally, illustrating her friend, the artist Sid Gotcliffe, holding a placard reading “Nazis Murder Jews,” appears alongside an apocalyptic, modernist cityscape by Abraham Manievich. Manievich’s 1919 depiction of the destruction of the Kiev ghetto, a literal scapegoat foregrounded in the rubble, seems to prefigure Picasso’s Guernica in an expressionist mode.
European Jews were not immune to the modernism sweeping over Europe, and used its fractured forms to comment on their people’s persecution. A late figurative drawing of severed limbs by Mark Rothko, from his crucifixion series in the early 1940s, makes a wry comment on Christian hegemony and Hitler’s campaign of annihilation. (Marc Chagall, who produced a similar series, is across the way, appearing to pee on his native Vitebsk, which he left for Paris.)
A charm bracelet produced in Terezin, whose individual pieces are identifiable on a touch screen, shows how production didn’t stop in the Holocaust. Hadar Gad’s notebook, imagining the obliteration of her grandmother’s hometown in Poland, and produced after Oct. 7, reveal the Shoah’s continued resonances today. Dor Guez, son of a Palestinian Christian mother and North African Jewish father, makes use of his family’s quotidian possessions to tell their post-World War II immigration story. Other other artists make use of suitcase imagery.
From commentaries on displacement, there next emerges a reclamation of ritual objects within the context of a dominant culture: a Bauhaus-inspired menorah, a mid-century modern Torah crown forged with looping silver threads. Women artists, like Lee Krasner, gravitate toward abstraction. A stretch devoted to women modernists focuses on intersectionality. There are Miriam cups, a feminist inclusion to the Seder ceremony, and artist Gil Yefman’s kippah, topped by a dark nipple to signify the feminine nature of God.
Two thousand years after the sack of Jerusalem, contemporary artists are still grappling with how to express their Jewishness alongside compounding, modern identities. Candace Breitz’s video installation registers her discomfort, as a white woman chosen to represent South Africa at the 57th Venice Biennial, and so features a diverse and representative group of artists, saying “I am Candace Breitz.” A piece by Izhar Patkin, inspired by motifs on Persian rugs, faces a carpet from the 1890s with the likeness of Moses and Aaron, which the Shah of Iran is believed to have commissioned for his Jewish doctor.
Coinciding with the new core exhibit is a second floor show spotlighting the early works by Anish Kapoor, the Indian-born British artist, whose father was Hindu and whose mother was from the Iraqi Jewish community. (In a press conference, Kapoor downplayed how his background shaped the art.) But the overall theme carries onto the new fourth floor learning center.
Replicas of objects — a mosaic floor tile, a ceramic turkey menorah from 2013’s “Thankgivukkah,” an ancient bull figurine that is remarkably Aardman-esque — are available to touch to teach visitors about materials artists use. A 50-foot glass vitrine, with 130 menorahs from around the globe, most crafted by non-Jewish artisans, look out onto the modernist art on the floor below. The display is not about Hanukkah, but the significance of light in all cultures.
Even in a section devoted to largely pre-diaspora archaeology, where families can dig through foam rubble for potsherds, a touchscreen invites the visitor to read about “interactions among peoples.”
Imperial coins and helmets of Hellenic occupiers are on view. So too, are ritual objects from other Levantine groups, some several thousand years old, up to a 20th-Century bridal pin from Baghdad. The Jewish story, these objects insist, can’t be understood in isolation.
The post A revived Jewish Museum spotlights the story of Jewish endurance appeared first on The Forward.
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Trump Safe After Being Rushed from White House Correspondents Dinner, Shooter in Custody
U.S. President Donald Trump is escorted out as a shooter opens fire during the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 25, 2026, in this screen capture from video. REUTERS/Bo Erickson
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump were rushed out of the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner by Secret Service agents on Saturday night after a man armed with a shotgun tried to breach security, officials said.
A man armed with a shotgun fired at a Secret Service agent, an FBI official told Reuters. The agent was hit in an area covered by protective gear and not harmed, the official said.
All federal officials, including Trump, were safe. About an hour after Trump was rushed from the event, he posted on Truth Social that a “shooter had been apprehended.”
“Quite an evening in D.C. Secret Service and Law Enforcement did a fantastic job,” Trump added.
Shortly afterwards, he posted, “The First Lady, plus the Vice President, and all Cabinet members, are in perfect condition.” He said he would be holding a White House press conference on Saturday night.
Anthony Guglielmi, a Secret Service spokesman, said the service was investigating a shooting near the main screening area at the entrance to the event.
After the sound of shots, dinner attendees immediately stopped talking and people started screaming “Get down, get down!”
Hundreds of guests dove under the tables as Secret Service officers in combat gear ran into the dining room. Trump and the first lady had bent down behind the dais before being hustled out by Secret Service officers.
Many of the 2,600 attendees took cover while waiters fled to the front of the dining hall.
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Trump Cancels Envoys’ Pakistan Trip, in Blow to Hopes for Iran War Breakthrough
US President Donald Trump speaks on the day he honors reigning Major League Soccer (MLS) champion Inter Miami CF players and team officials with an event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, US, March 5, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
President Donald Trump canceled a trip by two US envoys to Iran war mediator Pakistan on Saturday, dealing a new setback to peace prospects after Iran’s foreign minister departed Islamabad after speaking only to Pakistani officials.
While peace talks failed to materialize Saturday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered his troops to “forcefully” attack Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, his office said, further testing a three-week ceasefire.
Trump told reporters in Florida that he decided to call off the planned visit by US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner because the talks in Islamabad involved too much travel and expense, and Iran’s latest peace offer was not good enough for him.
Before boarding Air Force One on Saturday for a return flight to Washington, Trump said Iran had improved an offer to resolve the conflict after he canceled the visit, “but not enough.”
In a social media post, Trump also wrote there was “tremendous infighting and confusion” within Iran’s leadership.
“Nobody knows who is in charge, including them. Also, we have all the cards, they have none! If they want to talk, all they have to do is call!!!” he posted on Truth Social.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi earlier left the Pakistani capital without any sign of a breakthrough in talks with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and other senior officials.
Araqchi later described his visit to Pakistan as “very fruitful,” adding in a social media post that he had “shared Iran’s position concerning (a) workable framework to permanently end the war on Iran. Have yet to see if the U.S. is truly serious about diplomacy”.
Iranian media reported that Araqchi had flown to Oman’s capital Muscat, saying he will meet with senior officials to “discuss and exchange views on bilateral relations and regional developments”.
Sharif wrote in a post on X that he spoke with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian about the regional security situation and told him that Pakistan was committed to serving “as an honest and sincere facilitator — working tirelessly to advance durable peace and lasting stability.”
Tehran has ruled out a new round of direct talks with the United States and an Iranian diplomatic source said his country would not accept Washington’s “maximalist demands.”
IRAN AND US AT AN IMPASSE
Washington and Tehran are at an impasse as Iran has largely closed the Strait of Hormuz, which normally carries one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments, while the US blocks Iran’s oil exports.
The conflict, in which a ceasefire is in force, began with US-Israeli airstrikes on Iran on February 28. Iran has since carried out strikes against Israel, US bases and Gulf states, and the war has pushed up energy prices to multi-year highs, stoking inflation and darkening global growth prospects.
Araqchi “explained our country’s principled positions regarding the latest developments related to the ceasefire and the complete end of the imposed war against Iran,” said a statement on the minister’s official Telegram account.
Asked about Tehran’s reservations over US positions in the talks, an Iranian diplomatic source in Islamabad told Reuters: “Principally, Iranian side will not accept maximalist demands.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt had said the US had seen some progress from the Iranian side in recent days and hoped more would come over the weekend, while Vice President JD Vance was ready to travel to Pakistan as well.
Vance led a first round of unsuccessful talks with Iran in Islamabad earlier this month.
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Hezbollah Says Ceasefire ‘Meaningless’ as Fighting Continues in South
Israeli military vehicles and soldiers in a village in southern Lebanon as the Israeli army operates in it as seen from the Israeli side of the border, April 23, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Ayal Margolin
Lebanon’s Hezbollah said a US-mediated ceasefire in the war with Israel was meaningless a day after it was extended for three weeks, as Lebanese authorities reported two people killed by an Israeli strike and Hezbollah downed an Israeli drone.
US President Donald Trump announced the three-week extension on Thursday after hosting Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors at the White House. The ceasefire agreement between the governments of Lebanon and Israel had been due to expire on Sunday.
While the ceasefire has led to a significant reduction in hostilities, Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah have continued to trade blows in southern Lebanon, where Israel has kept soldiers in a self-declared “buffer zone.”
Responding to the extension, Hezbollah lawmaker Ali Fayyad said “it is essential to point out that the ceasefire is meaningless in light of Israel’s insistence on hostile acts, including assassinations, shelling, and gunfire” and its demolition of villages and towns in the south.
“Every Israeli attack… gives the resistance the right to a proportionate response,” he added.
Hezbollah is not a party to the ceasefire agreement, and has strongly objected to Lebanon’s face-to-face contacts with Israel.
BUFFER ZONE
The April 16 agreement does not require Israeli troops to withdraw from the belt of southern Lebanon seized during the war. The zone extends 5 to 10 km (3 to 6 miles) into Lebanon.
Israel says the buffer zone aims to protect northern Israel from attacks by Hezbollah, which fired hundreds of rockets at Israel during the war.
Hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel reignited on March 2, when the group opened fire in support of Iran in the regional war. The ceasefire in Lebanon emerged separately from Washington’s efforts to resolve its conflict with Tehran, though Iran had called for Lebanon to be included in any broader truce.
Nearly 2,500 people have been killed in Lebanon since March 2, the Lebanese health ministry says.
ISRAELI MILITARY WARNS RESIDENTS TO LEAVE TOWN
Lebanon’s health ministry said an Israeli airstrike killed two people in the southern village of Touline on Friday.
Hezbollah shot down an Israeli drone, the group and the Israeli military said. Hezbollah identified it as a Hermes 450 and said it had downed it with a surface-to-air missile.
An Israeli drone was heard circling above Beirut throughout the day on Friday, Reuters reporters said.
The Israeli military warned residents of the southern town of Deir Aames to leave their homes immediately, saying it planned to act against “Hezbollah activities” there.
Deir Aames is located north of the area occupied by Israeli forces, and it was the first time Israel had issued such a warning since the ceasefire came into force on April 16. Posted on social media, the Israeli warning gave no details of the activities it said Hezbollah was conducting in the town.
The Israeli military also said it had intercepted a drone prior to its crossing into Israeli territory, and that sirens were sounded in line with protocol.
WAR-WEARY RESIDENTS SEEK END TO FIGHTING
The continued fighting has angered war-weary Lebanese, who say they want to see a genuine ceasefire put a full halt to violence.
“What’s this? Is this called a ceasefire? Or is this mocking (people’s) intelligence?” said Naem Saleh, a 73-year-old owner of a newsstand in Beirut.
Residents of northern Israel had mostly returned to daily life, but expressed pessimism about the longevity of the ceasefire with Lebanon.
“I believe that the ceasefire is so fragile, and unfortunately it won’t stand long, in my opinion,” said Eliad Eini, a resident of Nahariya, which lies just 10 km (6 miles) from the border with Lebanon.
On Wednesday, Israeli strikes killed at least five people in the south, including a journalist.
Israel’s Ambassador to Washington Yechiel Leiter, in his opening remarks at Thursday’s talks, said “Lebanon should acknowledge the temporary presence of the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) and the right of Israel to defend itself from a hostile force that is firing on the population.”
Lebanon’s Ambassador to the United States Nada Moawad, in a written statement sent to Reuters, called for the ceasefire to be fully respected and said it would allow the necessary conditions for meaningful negotiations.
Lebanon has said it aims to secure the full withdrawal of Israeli troops from its territory in broader talks with Israel at a later stage.
Trump said on Thursday that he looked forward to hosting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun in the near future, and said there was “a great chance” the two countries would reach a peace agreement this year.
Hezbollah attacks killed two civilians in Israel after March 2, while 15 Israeli soldiers have died in Lebanon since then, Israel says.