Art History Through a New Lens 

Florence is the art capital of the world. I knew this heading into my time abroad, so I was eager to take art history classes. Most of the artwork I encountered in Europe, and especially in Florence, is heavily rooted in Christianity. A vast majority of the art is a depiction of Jesus, Mary, and the Cross. Jewish art is not a part of European art culture in the way that Christian art is. This was a challenge as my whole religious belief ends where the art depicted begins. I found this both fascinating and challenging. What intrigued me about this was the way it pushed me to truly look at the art from a purely academic standpoint.  

It was very interesting to learn about all of the Christian biblical stories while visualizing what the culture in the area was surrounding them. Looking at the art gave me a completely different perspective on what Christian art represented in Italian culture. This disconnect between the art and myself pushed me to see and study the art as a historical and cultural window to the world that once was based around this artwork.  

This is a photo of the Basilica di Santa Croce. The blue six-sided star looks like a Star of David and is what piqued my curiosity of Jewish Iconography in Christian art. 

Finding Connections Through Symbolism 

One of the most unexpected joys of my time studying abroad was the experience of discovering how these symbols often mirrored or overlapped with symbols in Judaism. These symbols brought a connection to parts of my own Jewish identity. Take a depiction of a pomegranate. In Christian art, a pomegranate can represent eternity and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. On the other hand, in Judaism, the pomegranate can represent Rosh Hashanah; it symbolizes abundance, blessing, and the earth's ability to sustain life. These overlaps gave me a new entry point to understanding art. I was not simply seeing the art, but rather connecting parts of my own life to the world the art represented.  

This is one of the many Tuesday night dinners that were been held at Chabad with other Jewish students and community members in Florence. 

A Class that Changed it All 

I took a class entitled Secrets, Signs & Symbols in Italian Art: Exercises in Iconography. This class was extremely influential to me. We had a project to research iconography in Greek mythology. My teacher knew how interested I was in the overlap of Jewish and Christian iconography, so she let me have complete creative liberty and research what Jewish symbols there were and how they overlapped with Christian iconography. This project allowed us to dive deeply into Jewish iconography and how it intersected with Christian iconography. 

 I was able to learn more about how my own heritage appears in European art. For the first time in an artistic setting, I was able to bring my full identity in. It made me realize that art isn’t what is portrayed; it is about what you want to see, what you want to bring to it, and how it influences what you have seen. David is a major symbol for the Florentine Republic, a major symbol in the bible. The Story of David and Goliath is also taught in Judaism. This story from my childhood religious days and the new visualization I was being presented with really brought that identity into fruition.  

This is a photo of part of the regular community members who would come to join the students for Tuesday night dinner.  

This is from when I went to the top of the Duomo after we learned about it in class, so I was able to teach all my friends about the significance of the symbols painted along the inside of the dome.  

Seeing Art Differently 

After learning it, I couldn’t not see it. This overlap in artwork started appearing to me everywhere. While being abroad, there are a lot of churches that you go into and explore, but many fewer synagogues. Being given an opportunity to see where I could find Jewish artwork and connect back to my heritage was an incredible experience that I was so grateful to have been given. After being taught how to look for this overlap, I began seeing and searching for it everywhere. I became the friend who wouldn't let us leave the museum and would research every painting I could see an overlap in. It ended up enriching my artistic discovery to a level I could have never imagined reaching. I continue to be passionate about iconography and how various timelines of iconography have influenced each other. 

This is a photo of my family and me in front of a religious sculpture. 

Finding Jewish Community in Florence 

Being abroad, I was not sure how much Jewish connection I was going to have. Through my iconography class, I was able to connect to the Rabbi in Florence. I began attending weekly dinners with other Jewish students abroad. It brought such a wonderful sense of belonging, community, and care within the city of Florence itself. It was an incredible experience to feel so welcome to the program itself, but then to have been so immersed into the Jewish daily lives of people in Florence elevated my experience immensely. 

 I was able to reconnect to parts of my heritage that I did not know existed. I learned about the different Judaic customs and cultures in Italy and how they are different than the ones I grew up with. I was able to meet younger members of the Jewish community and establish connections with them through my time abroad. Being abroad came with many challenges, opportunities, and surprises. Being more connected to my Jewish heritage due to the exposure to Christian art was an incredible surprise that will be held with me for the rest of my life.