The Jewish Museum presents Personas: George Segal's Abraham and Isaac, an installation of the life-sized plaster sculpture by American artist George Segal (American, 1924-2000), being shown at the Museum for the first time. The artist adapted the biblical story of Abraham, who was commanded to sacrifice his son Isaac as proof of his obedience and faith in God, as an allegory for the 1970 tragedy at Kent State University in Ohio. During the incident, National Guardsmen, who were ordered to control an escalated anti-Vietnam protest, shot and killed four students, wounding nine others. The exhibition will be on view from July 19, 2019 through October 2020.
In addition to the sculpture Abraham and Isaac (In Memory of May 4, 1970, Kent State University) (1978), the exhibition will include the iconic photograph taken by then Kent State photo journalism student John Paul Filo (American, b. 1948) of Mary Ann Vecchio grieving over the body of college student Jeffrey Glenn Miller, as well as the Newsweekcover from May 18, 1970 that used the same photograph. An excerpt from the Michael Blackwood film, George Segal (1978), showing the artist talking about the sculpture while he was working on it, will also be shown.
George Segal is best known for his haunting, direct-cast, life-sized, figurative sculptures. Born in New York to a Jewish couple who emigrated from Eastern Europe, Segal is internationally renowned as a modernist sculptor. He was associated with the Pop Art movement but on occasion dealt with intense emotional and political topics. Abraham and Isaac (In Memory of May 4, 1970, Kent State University) is a compelling example of Segal's engagement in his times.
About the Jewish Museum
Located on New York City's famed Museum Mile, the Jewish Museum is a distinctive hub for art and Jewish culture for people of all backgrounds. Founded in 1904, the Museum was the first institution of its kind in the United States and is one of the oldest Jewish museums in the world. Devoted to exploring art and Jewish culture from ancient to contemporary, the Museum offers diverse exhibitions and programs, and maintains a unique collection of nearly 30,000 works of art, ceremonial objects, and media reflecting the global Jewish experience over more than 4,000 years.
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