“There is Nothing Like Jerusalem”: Time Out Covers the JCF

[Time Out Jerusalem, July 29, 2010. Translated from the Hebrew by Uri Dromi]

Even Nicole Krauss says that there’s nothing like this city. Creative guests at Mishkenot Sha’ananim sum up their stay here

Last month, five outstanding guests were hosted at Mishkenot Sha’ananim: Novelist couple Nicole Krauss and Jonathan Safran Foer (who will be staying for another month), visual artist Shelley Jordon, choreographer and dancer Reggie Wilson and urban planner Josh Sirefman. Bonding with local cultural institutions, they were both inspired and inspiring. The project began through cooperation between Mishkenot Sha’ananim Director-General Uri Dromi and Elise Bernhardt, President of the Foundation for Jewish Culture in New York. Following the project’s impressive success, Mishkenot Sha’ananim plans to invite similar groups in the coming year.

Participants told Time Out about their stay at Mishkenot Sha’ananim:

Shelley Jordon – visual artist specializing in animation and professor of art at Oregon State University, Portland:

This is my first visit to Israel. Obviously, I did not know what to expect. I asked to have a studio set up where I could work and was offered lovely premises at the Jerusalem House of Quality. But I soon realized that every moment I spend closed up in the studio will take away an opportunity to learn something about this astounding city and to meet its unique people. That’s why I dedicated myself to a fascinating, month-long journey that I will never forget in my life.

I already felt the intensity of this experience on opening night, when I presented my exhibit at Mishkenot Sha’ananim – in the presence of leading Jerusalem cultural figures – and subsequently at the laboratory. Prof. Milly Heyd invited me to lecture on postmodern art and I was amazed at the vitality her students displayed.
I was invited to present projects at the Musrara School and was treated to a guided tour of the Israel Museum that is soon to [re]open. When I visited Yad Vashem’s Holocaust History Museum, my personal guide was none other than its curator, Yehudit Inbar. What impressed me most of all was the burst of energy that emanated from all the people I met, their human warmth, their desire to create and inspire and their belief that everything is possible.

Amir Heshin took us on our first tour, explaining the complex realities of this city and all Israel. Having noticed that Israel has no defined borders, the little time I spent in the studio was devoted to creating a series of animated maps of the Land of Israel, from ancient times until the present. I am waiting eagerly for my next opportunity to return to Jerusalem.

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Reggie Wilson, choreographer and dancer, New York:

I visited Israel many years ago and was even privileged to dance with Ohad Naharin, whom I consider my spiritual mentor. My visit here is part of a personal quest and I will be proceeding from here to Egypt.

The moment I set foot in Jerusalem, I was invited to the Higher Academy of Dance. Choreographers and dancers need no introductions. The moment I walked into the classroom, we all began moving in our international language. There are extraordinary talents here – but I’m not telling you anything new.

We spent Friday nights at the homes of Jerusalemites. One such evening was traditional, with prayers and blessings, while the other was secular. We were also invited to a party in Tel Aviv – what a difference! There is no doubt about it – Jerusalem is special, although I did take a few trips to Tel Aviv on my own to get a taste of something different. I also went to Haifa to meet with the Beta troupe of immigrants from Ethiopia. They did not want to let me leave and to tell the truth, it was also hard for me to part from them. Members of the Vertigo troupe hosted me at their village at Netiv Halamed-Heh. We danced, sang and ate together.

I leave behind friends that I feel I have known for years. For me, as a music, rhythm and movement person, Jerusalem is a dream. I sat with the whole group in the Mahaneyuda Restaurant. No choreographer could ever arrange such a celebration of tastes, human affection, sounds and colors.

For me, it was also a spiritual experience of the highest order. In such a complex city, with a multiplicity of faces and opinions, the focus of world attention, there is only one question: Can people listen to one another?

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Josh Sirefman, urban planner who assisted New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg with several major projects:

From the outset, I felt like a foreign implant among creative people, artists and writers, but the intensive time period spent with them enriched me with new, more complex outlooks regarding reality. I was surprised that the busy Jerusalemites were so willing to make time and talk to me, presenting me with their fascinating projects. While it’s true that I spearheaded extensive projects in New York, I came here with the intention of hearing more than being heard. People showed such interest in New York, however, that when I lectured at Mishkenot Sha’ananim I tried to find similarities between urban planning elements in New York and Jerusalem.

I was very impressed by the tour of Ariel Sharon Park in Hiriya and especially by its overall conception, that takes environmental quality and leisure into account. I learned a lot from meetings with Ir Amim Association members and Bimkom Association planners. Essentially, I realized how little I knew about the situation in eastern Jerusalem and the settlements. Here, everything, including urban planning, originates in conflict. I traveled to Ramallah on my own and was surprised by its economic growth, although I know that it does not provide a complete picture of what is going on in the West Bank.

My discussions with Deputy Mayor Naomi Zur, Richard Lester and others led me to examine the special complexity of urban planning in Jerusalem, in which the true source of authority is uncertain. During my tours of the city, I saw open areas that were not being used for the public good. I thought that French Hill Junction, for example, could be turned into a park that would serve all population groups in the city, as we did in New York when we turned the abandoned High Line into a bustling multicultural park.

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Jonathan Safran Foer – author of Everything Is Illuminated, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and Eating Animals – and his wife Nicole Krauss were recently designated by The New Yorker as two of the world’s 20 most influential novelists under 40:

Nicole and I have been guests of cultural institutions throughout the world. Recently, we were hosted at the American Academy in Berlin, where we were treated royally and could create to our hearts’ content. When we were invited to Mishkenot Sha’ananim, I was pleased to be given another opportunity to take time and write. I must say that your hospitality has exceeded all expectations. People have really gone out of their way to make our stay pleasant – and that’s no easy task because we’ve got two small children.

In Berlin, no one expects you to come into contact with the local cultural community, but Jerusalem was different. Ostensibly, writers, unlike visual artists or choreographers, do not really need to commune with their environment. But when you’re staying in the same room in which Saul Bellow wrote To Jerusalem and Back and Amos Oz wrote chapters of A Tale of Love and Darkness, you’re placed within a special context. Then you roam the streets and the special Jerusalem atmosphere entices you to leave your shell.
At Mishkenot Sha’ananim last week, I participated in a discussion with Etgar Keret. He and I have a lot in common: Not only did we watch the World Cup matches together but also shared the feeling of being two young authors who cannot write literature but do so nonetheless. I also attended the opening of the Jerusalem Film Festival at Sultan’s Pool. I’ve never been in the company of so many Jews!

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Nicole Krauss, author of Man Walks into a Room and The History of Love:

This is not my first visit to Jerusalem. My family has deep roots here. But I always felt that I need to stay in this city for some time, to learn more about local literary activity here and examine the sources of my own creativity. In 2008, during the First International Writers Festival, I suggested to Uri Dromi that I and my family come to Mishkenot Sha’ananim, in keeping with Teddy Kollek’s tradition of hospitality that I had heard so much about. The dream came true and now – without revealing everything about my next book – I can tell you that I am actually in the place I’m writing about.

At the Writers Festival, I was privileged to speak with Amos Oz. This year, I met Aharon Appelfeld, an author I greatly admire. As a young writer who devoured his books, the opportunity to sit next to him on the dais, before a literature loving Jerusalem audience, facing the captivating landscape of the Old City walls, was an unforgettable experience. Last week, I spoke with another author at Mishkenot Sha’ananim whom I hold in high regard, Yoram Kaniuk. It was a fascinating conversation with a creative artist whom I feel has not been given the worldwide recognition he deserves.

Generally speaking, I find the close familiarity among people here to be enchanting. Who sat in the first row at the meeting with Kaniuk? Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fischer. When I needed to speak to a judge because I have such a character in my book, people referred me to one who was eager to talk to me. When I needed an architect to explain a neighborhood to me, a most enthusiastic candidate was found at once. All in all, I have never been to any other city whose residents speak about it with such warmth and love. There is nothing like Jerusalem anywhere else in the world.