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Nov. 3, 2006
In homage to a mother
Sisters' relationship with family is a work of art.
BAILA LAZARUS
Growing up as sisters can be hard enough, with the competition,
the jealousies and the vying for attention, but when religion and
death step into the picture, it can make everything else seem trivial.
In the case of Bina Cole and Wendy Wortsman, these two elements
tested their relationship but eventually brought them together.
Cole, who lives in Toronto, is an Orthodox Jew, while Vancouverite
Wortsman "loosely practises" Judaism. The two united to
take care of their mother before she passed away four years ago.
It was their mother's wish that the sisters help each other and
become closer, and it seems to be have been fulfilled, as witnessed
by the gesture of Cole, staying at Wortsman's house while in Vancouver.
"For her to come over and stay at my house is amazing,"
said Wortsman. "She's made a lot a lot of concessions without
breaking any of her rules. Certainly, when she first became religious,
she would never have done that."
Their reconciliation is also manifested in a new art exhibit, A
Mother's Embrace, at the Sidney and Gertrude Zack Gallery. Though
the theme of the exhibit is focused on mother and family, each sister
interprets them differently.
Wortsman's work is very image-based, using gloves, purses and perfume
bottles, almost as though they had been shaken out of an old suitcase,
to represent memories of her mother.
"A lot of the pieces I use have the image of my mother getting
ready to go out," Wortsman explained. "As a kid, that
was a very strong image for me, watching my mother put on her gloves
or purse or pearls."
The symbolism replays in works like "In Your Shoes," "A
Promise" and "Passing On." Particularly poignant
in "A Promise" are the crossed fingers of the glove, as
though her mother had given her a tacit promise that she would always
be there, but perhaps had her fingers crossed behind her back, indicating
that it wasn't true.
In "Joy," Wortsman has depicted an array of perfume bottles
in one of the few black and white pieces in the collection, reminiscent
of the perfume Joy that her mother used. Also relevant to Wortsman,
and a new theme that she is beginning to explore, is the image of
a hammock. It appears on the works "Hammocks" and the
beautiful "Embrace."
"It's a symbol I'm going to work with for a while," she
said, explaining that it's a strong sign of trust and support, as
well as relaxation.
In contrast to Wortsman's work, which is more focused on personal
family connections, Cole's is more allegorical, looking at women
in a broader context.
"Mother's Perspective," Cole explained, documents how
the Lubavitcher Rebbe, at one of his public talks, asked everyone
to turn their L'chaim cups upside down in order to pour out blessings
to the whole world. A rabbi who was there looked up to the women's
balcony and saw hundreds of cups turned upside down.
"This was a special place where my mother and I had spent time
together," said Cole. "The juxtaposition of both events
motivated the picture."
The power of women to open up new worlds is presented in "Embracing
Freedom."
"It relates the transformation of negative events, such as
the expulsion of Jews from their homes in Gush Katif and Amona,
into a positive outcome," said Cole, "true freedom, with
the arrival of the Moshiach and the Redemption."
The centrepiece "Two Sisters – One World" is much
more of a comment on Cole's personal relationship with her sister.
"This is the story of two sisters, one Lubavitcher and the
other who sometimes remembers to light Shabbos candles," said
Cole. "Despite the visible different perspectives and expressions
of their respective Jewish mission statements, in the end they have
the same mother and share the same world."
A Mother's Embrace shows until Dec. 6. For further information,
visit www.jccgv.com
or call 604-257-5111.
Baila Lazarus is a freelance writer, photographer and
illustrator living in Vancouver. Her work can be seen at www.orchiddesigns.net.
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