Mending the Broken: Tikkun Olam meets Kintsugi

Artist, Designer and Educator Ellen Goldberg

Tikkun Olam, Hebrew for "repairing the world," embodies Jewish traditions' broad concept of elevating the world through creative acts. It includes repurposing old items, solving problems through design, and creating beauty. Kintsugi, the Japanese art of mending with golden joinery, shares a similar mission. While Kintsugi is a specific process, Tikkun Olam is more expansive. Both align with mitzvot, particularly Hiddur Mitzvah, which beautifies ritual objects. In a two-part workshop, participants address our throw-away culture by making collages from found materials and then create new, special ritual objects from broken items, incorporating Kintsugi principles. All skill levels are welcome.

Part 1- January 17,  2024

Discuss Tikkun Olam, Kintsugi and Hiddur Mitzvah and their relationship to our culture and tradition.  Create a collage from collected papers and discuss next session.
Bring: wrappers and papers you will collect prior to the first session.  Other materials and supplies will be provided by the instructor. 

Part 2- January 24,  2024

Bring: A broken object from your home which, along with instructor's supplies and tools will be repurposed into a new, usable ritual object

Cost: $45/member or $54/non-member.

Materials: Provided by instructor unless otherwise noted in session descriptions.

About the Artist

Ellen Goldberg is a Sarasota based artist, designer, art educator and Jewish educator. She has long considered herself a citizen of the world as evidenced by her art and design work, and teaching styles and philosophies. As an educator she strives to present innovative ideas and perspectives as well as the putting together of unrelated ideas and materials to create new philosophies and art forms. She holds a BFA from Syracuse University and MA in Art Education from University of Florida. Additionally, she has spent many years studying Holocaust at universities and symposiums, and Judaica at conferences and in Israel. She has taught Jewish education, holocaust and art courses over the span of many years in colleges, art centers, synagogues, libraries, museums, online and through residencies. She has also exhibited her assemblage and fiber artwork in multiple galleries and participated in many art shows throughout the United States and Spain.  During her career she has been the recipient of many grants and awards. Ellen continues to explore new ideas and hone her craft, hence the creation of this course that combines several topics that she will intertwine with the hope of inspiring its participants to continue to create and explore new connections.