Majrev un Mishrach : West und Ost
By Derschmidt • 10:50 AM • Category: Projects - curated by Ritesinstitute, Rites Events
West und Ost : A film- translation
A video-installation by Sala-Manca Gruppe/Jerusalem
at Freiraum MQ Wien
curated by ritesinstitute
In 1923 Sidney Goldin filmed in Vienna the todays classical Yiddish film “Est and West” starring Molly Picon – the American-Yiddish star of the Yiddish Cinema and Jacob Karlich – her husband in the real life. The film tells the story of: Morris Brown an American manufacturer born in Poland returns to his hometown with his very American daughter, Mollie (Molly Picon) for a family wedding.
The bride, daughter of his traditionally observant brother, and Mollie, whose exuberant antics fill the film, could not be more different. But Mollie unexpectedly meets her match, an engaging young yeshiva scholar who forsakes tradition and joins the secular world to win her heart.
85 years after Goldin’s film, the Sala-manca Group, a collective of Israeli-Argentinean artists, come back to Vienna in order to shoot “West and East – a film-translation”. The work makes references to the idea of cultural and language translation that apperar also in the American and Austrian version of Goldin’s film, between the Yiddish, the English and the German texts. It tells the story of Yaakov K., an Jewish Ortodox guy but also a street graffit writer, -niece of the former ortodox and after- secular acclaimed writer Yaakov Ben-Ali (Main charachter of East and Weast). Yaakov K. comes to Vienna in order to get the Shilumim/Restitutuion. Because of the subversive tone of his graffitis, the Israeli intelligence services sends a Women agent of the Mosad to Vienna in order spy him and bring him back to Israel for investigation. Wearing as a Young Orthodox – a quotation of the male characteristic of Molly Picon’s in East and West Moly F. tries to get closer to Yaakov. “Unexpected” they fall in love. This feelings lead them to re-think their duties to the religion and the state
While Ost and West is a funny and clear manifest for the changing values, manners, and believes of the traditional east-european Jewish life. “West and East – A film translation” is not just an homage to Goldin’s film and how it deals with this specific and amazing moment in the history of European Jewry, but a translation of the subversiveness of the film to contemporary terms and topics.
SALA-MANCA GROUP
is a group of Jerusalem-based artists that creates in different fields and media. The group also curate art events and edit an
independent art journal. Sala-manca’s works deal with poetics of translation with textual, urban and net contexts, as well as social and political issues.
www.sala-manca.net
in Kooperation mit der israelischen Botschaft
Ort: Freiraum/quartier21, MQ Wien
27. April 19h Eröffnung durch Bettina Henkel
(Vizerektor der Akademie der bildenden Künste Wien)
28. April bis 08. Mai., geöffnet täglich von 10 bis 20 Uhr
29. April lecture mit der Sala-Manca Group (und Prof Frank Stern)
08. Mai Finisage mit Performance Nelly Agassi, Galerie habres+partner
Akademie der bildenden Künste Wien)
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