News

News about The Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life. Learn about exhibitions, programs and events, collection highlights, and read Confluence, the Magnes newsletter. 

In Global Transit: Forced Migration of Jews and other Refugees (1940s-1960s)

May 19-22, 2019

Conference at GHI West and The Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life, University of California, Berkeley 

Conveners: Wolf Gruner (USC Shoah Foundation Center for Advanced Genocide Research, Los Angeles), Simone Lässig (German Historical Institute Washington/GHI West, UC Berkeley), Francesco Spagnolo (The Magnes, UC Berkeley), Swen Steinberg (University of Dresden) 

In cooperation with India Branch Office of the Max Weber Foundation, New Delhi (Indra Sengupta, Razak Khan) and China Branch Office of the Max Weber Foundation, Beijing (Max Jacob Fölster

Victoria Hanna | Schusterman Visiting Israeli Artist at The Magnes (Fall 2017)

Jerusalem based artist, Victoria Hanna, is a world-renowned composer, creator, performer, researcher, and teacher of voice and language. The daughter of an ultra-orthodox rabbi, she has been greatly influenced by her childhood environment. In her work, she deploys a variety of vocal techniques in the performance of ancient and modern Hebrew texts, among them Sefer Yetzirah ("Book of Creation"), an early Kabbalistic treatise.

Taube Family Arthur Szyk Collection at The Magnes

Largest single monetary gift to acquire art in UC Berkeley history brings work of major 20th  century artist to campus

BERKELEY -- The extensive body of work of an artist and illustrator whose subjects spanned some of the most profound events of the 20th century will be available to the world in a public institution for the first time, thanks to a $10.1 million gift from Bay Area-based Taube Philanthropies to The Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life at the University of California, Berkeley. The Taube grant is the largest single monetary gift to acquire art in the history of the campus. 

This gift provides students, scholars, and the public access to the most significant collection of works by Arthur Szyk, a Polish Jewish artist and political caricaturist who ultimately settled in the United States in 1940. Szyk used motifs drawn from the Bible, history, politics, and culture to pair extraordinary craftsmanship with insightful commentary on a diverse range of subjects including Judaism, the founding of the State of Israel, the American War of Independence, World War II, and the Holocaust.

PopUp Exhibition Series: Spring 2017 Program

Each week, UC Berkeley faculty and graduate students, visiting artists and other notable guests will present brief lectures focused on selected treasures from the The Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life. One speaker and one object at a time, these “flash” exhibitions will include the opportunity to view the art and artifacts discussed intimately and up close.

Touring The Magnes Collection with Internet Archive founder, Brewster Kahle

Brewster Kahle, founder of the Internet Archive -- which stores a selection of audiovisual materials from The Magnes Collection, joined Curator Francesco Spagnolo and colleagues from the Digital Humanities community at UC Berkeley for a "behind the scenes" tour. 

360-degree image created by Professor Greg Niemeyer, Director, Berkeley Center for New Media:

Israeli Film Series 2016-2017

A year-long series on Israeli cinema, co-presented by the Berkeley Institute for Jewish Law and Israel Studies and The Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life. All programs begin at 6 p.m., include a reception and are free and open to the public. 

In the fall, the screenings will be devoted to a retrospective of (1964-2016), an actress famous for her cinematic roles portraying the experience of Mizrachi Jewish women in Israeli society and on the Israeli screen. In the spring, the series will move thematically through key moments in Israeli history, society, and culture to examine the potential of Israeli cinema to tug at the intersections of art and society.

The Magnes Celebrates the Opening of "From Mendelssohn To Mendelssohn"

The Magnes held its opening night reception of From Mendelssohn To Mendelssohn: German-Jewish Encounters in Art, Music and Material Culture on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016. The opening was attended by more than 300 Magnes supporters, community members and students and professors from the University of California, Berkeley.