Kopel Gurwin

My friend Kelly of Pinkadotquilts sent me a link to a blog she follows.  She thought a particular post might interest me.  She really knows me.  I was introduced to the late artist, Kopel Gurwin and I am mesmerized by his work. So thank you to Kelly and Brenda.  You can find Brenda's post here:http://scrapsandstrings.blogspot.com/2011/07/mid-century-textile-art.html
She found a piece of his work at a local synagogue.  She has some wonderful close-up photos.  You can see them on her blog.

Kopel Gurwin's work, not only interests me because of the Judaic theme, but because he created his textile art from felt using a hand blanket stitch.  He was born in Poland in 1923 and survived imprisonment in concentration camps during WWII.  He lived in Sweden for a few years and then immigrated to Israel.  He studied art in Jerusalem at The Bezalel Academy of Art and Design. He was a painter and a graphic artist.   Felt tapestries with biblical themes became his means of expression.  He died in 1990.

The next piece that I found was on ebay.  It is a Jewish wedding canopy.  I happen to have a huge interest in wedding canopies right now because I am planning on making one for my son's upcoming wedding.  I love the idea of being married under the image of these birds kissing entwined in a heart. Gurwin's use of Hebrew letters as part of the design also fascinates me.

The Sound of Joy, The Sound of Gladness, The Voice of the Groom, The Voice of the Bride.

Here's another piece:

You can see these  next 2 pieces at The Lions Gallery:

King Solomon

Virgo

Here's another e-bay find:

David and Jonathan

This last tapestry was created to celebrate Israeli Independence in 1968 and was used to create a celebratory poster.  The lions represent Israel.