Don’t miss Hebrew College’s first art exhibit of the new academic year: “In the Beginning,” featuring works in acrylic and ink on canvas by Boston artist Mel Brown. Read more about the exhibit here.
The exhibit runs from September 10, 2023 – January 5, 2024 and is organized by the Hebrew College Arts Initiative.
Mel Brown’s original artwork and limited-edition prints will be available for purchase during the run of the fall exhibit. Through a generous arrangement with the artist, half of the proceeds will be given to Hebrew College.
About the Artist
Mel Brown is a self-taught painter, entrepreneur, and an occasional mystic descended from a family of Eastern European rabbis that originally came from Spain. He grew up in a working-class steel town in Northwest Indiana.
In his early years, he worked as a railroad switchman as well as a boiler cleaner at U.S. Steel in Gary, Indiana. He also studied abstract experimental photography at Indiana University under the tutelage of Henry Holmes Smith, one of the most influential fine art photography teachers of the mid-20th century.
For many years he has also been a dedicated student and teacher of Jewish mystical texts. In addition to leading intimate study groups in a line-by-line parsing of the Torah, he also co-leads a post-denominational Jewish spiritual community in the Boston area.
Through his many life experiences and journeys, Mel has been a keen observer of many cultures and traditions which has allowed him to weave a certain transcendent universalism into his art. He is engaged in creating non-representational art that is unique and evocative, drawing on his own wide ranging experiences, his sense of mystery, and his ongoing engagement with ancient Jewish texts.
Mel is engaged in creating non-representational art that is unique and evocative, drawing on his own wide ranging experiences, his sense of mystery, and his ongoing engagement with ancient Jewish texts.
His work often visually hints at the ongoing and ever changing mystery of creation. In its beauty, his art inspires the viewer to wonder.
הֲפֹךְ בָּהּ וַהֲפֹךְ בָּהּ, דְּכֹלָּא בָהּ
Turn it over and Turn it over.
Again and Again
Everything is in it
As you peruse the exhibit, we invite you to ask yourself:
What do you see in his art?
Is there an order out of chaos?
What are the letters that are interwoven?
Hebrew College’s Me’ah program, supported by Combined Jewish Philanthropies (CJP) is the oldest 
Join us for our next BJF Film Club meetup to discuss Magic Men on Tuesday, August 8 at 7 PM at Hebrew College for an exciting and lively conversation led by Boston Jewish Film Executive Director Susan Adler.