David Hartt: The Histories (Le Mancenillier) Installation

Beth Sholom Synagogue Preservation Foundation presents a newly commissioned, site-responsive multimedia installation by visual artist and Pew Fellow David Hartt. Comprising video, sculpture, music, and other elements, David Hartt: The Histories (le Mancenillier) activates Beth Sholom Synagogue, a Frank Lloyd Wright-designed National Historic Landmark in Elkins Park, just outside of Philadelphia. The organization describes the exhibition as a work that “considers histories of Jewish and Black Diasporas in the United States.” Hartt’s installation centers around 19th-century Jewish-American and Creole composer Louis Moreau Gottschalk. Ethiopian pianist Girma Yifrashewa will record the work of Gottschalk as the score for the installation, and a series of live programs will feature Caribbean, African American, and Jewish music from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, organized by Philadelphia-based baritone Jean Bernard Cerin.

Tour Schedule:

• Docent-led tours: Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays. Advanced reservations required. Please contact jrosen@bethsholomcongregation.org or 215-887-1342 x227.
• Self-guided tours: Wednesdays, Thursday, and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.