As a media creator: it is nothing but endlessly satisfying receiving notes of appreciation from the educators and high knowledge individuals who recognize deep cuts. Slipping in things like wheat on a tree, or an alphabetic representation of the divine or doubled angels who accompany a hapless family on erev Shabbat...also sonic references, eg quotes from a specific holiday's nusach in the soundtrack to a video - all these are a writer's gifts to people - if you know you know.
It is so gratifying when people see those things, really receive them and ponder them, as you're doing in this piece. It's special. I'm glad Koren did it, they must be thrilled you're seeing it and raising our attention to it. It makes the work doubly worth engaging in.
For what it's worth, I asked a flattering question along these lines directly to R. Crumb in San Francisco in 2009 and he responded with perfect Crumb horror (I'm paraphrasing to the best of my ability 20 years later) that I was full of shit, the Bible was full of shit and he didn't have the slightest interest in exegesis but only wanted to show how absurd it is. Loved that.
Jordan Gorfinkel is great, I agree. Great talent (in music too) great guy. No questions. I'm sure the others are great too, I just don't know them. But I still have lingering doubts on the wisdom of a comic book Bible.
I can hear the dismissive tut-tutting: "We've had illustrated Bibles for centuries. This is just the modern form of illustration. Kids are more responsive to visuals. Graphic novels are cool. All objections are merely fuddy-duddy conservatism."
I considered those arguments, and came to the conclusion they're wrong. Just because we're familiar with illustrated Bibles doesnt mean the concept is right. Who says we need to have a concrete image in our minds of what the Patriarchs looked like? Maybe we're better off without it.
And even if one accepts the concept, who says graphic novels are that great to begin with? There's a reason they're most closely associated with books entitled "The Underwear Kid Meets the Wedgie Boys" or something like that. They're cartoons. You can draw German cat nazis and mouse jews all day long - its still a cartoon, an inherently immature form of art. Gustave Dore, it isn't.
Anyway - just my musings. I'm not into book banning, so I suppose this is another case of live and let live. But I'm not jumping on the bandwagon either.
Illustrated classic Torah texts are not new at all. Gadi Pollack has done them for the Haggada and Megilas Esther (quite cleverly with much hidden meaning, I might add) over a decade ago. Why the sudden excitement?
Those books are for children, though, and cartoons are appropriate for them. And its just the Haggada and the Megilla. These are intended for adults, and its the Torah itself.
I am pleased to see that you are finally addressing the presence and important idea of an illustrated Torah. While I am not familiar with the new Koren version, I do know about R. Crumb's graphic novel version.
However, I want to make you aware that before either of these additions were published, I wrote, designed and illustrated my own version of the Torah,
BETWEEN HEAVEN & EARTH: An Illuminated Torah Commentary that was published in 2009 by Pomegranate Communications. It has been selling worldwide since then. I have illustrated each of the 54 parashiyot and provided a section of commentary ( AfterImages)on each parashah and the reasons why I chose its images. It is a visual midrash, so to speak. It is available both at Amazon and at my online gallery. The links are below:
Your fascinating essay entices one to investigate Koren’s offerings further, but gives the appearance of “dissing” R. Crumb in the process. Is this your intent? That would be a most gratuitous, disappointing, and unearned cheap shot. Or, maybe I misread?
As a media creator: it is nothing but endlessly satisfying receiving notes of appreciation from the educators and high knowledge individuals who recognize deep cuts. Slipping in things like wheat on a tree, or an alphabetic representation of the divine or doubled angels who accompany a hapless family on erev Shabbat...also sonic references, eg quotes from a specific holiday's nusach in the soundtrack to a video - all these are a writer's gifts to people - if you know you know.
It is so gratifying when people see those things, really receive them and ponder them, as you're doing in this piece. It's special. I'm glad Koren did it, they must be thrilled you're seeing it and raising our attention to it. It makes the work doubly worth engaging in.
For what it's worth, I asked a flattering question along these lines directly to R. Crumb in San Francisco in 2009 and he responded with perfect Crumb horror (I'm paraphrasing to the best of my ability 20 years later) that I was full of shit, the Bible was full of shit and he didn't have the slightest interest in exegesis but only wanted to show how absurd it is. Loved that.
Jordan Gorfinkel is great, I agree. Great talent (in music too) great guy. No questions. I'm sure the others are great too, I just don't know them. But I still have lingering doubts on the wisdom of a comic book Bible.
I can hear the dismissive tut-tutting: "We've had illustrated Bibles for centuries. This is just the modern form of illustration. Kids are more responsive to visuals. Graphic novels are cool. All objections are merely fuddy-duddy conservatism."
I considered those arguments, and came to the conclusion they're wrong. Just because we're familiar with illustrated Bibles doesnt mean the concept is right. Who says we need to have a concrete image in our minds of what the Patriarchs looked like? Maybe we're better off without it.
And even if one accepts the concept, who says graphic novels are that great to begin with? There's a reason they're most closely associated with books entitled "The Underwear Kid Meets the Wedgie Boys" or something like that. They're cartoons. You can draw German cat nazis and mouse jews all day long - its still a cartoon, an inherently immature form of art. Gustave Dore, it isn't.
Anyway - just my musings. I'm not into book banning, so I suppose this is another case of live and let live. But I'm not jumping on the bandwagon either.
Illustrated classic Torah texts are not new at all. Gadi Pollack has done them for the Haggada and Megilas Esther (quite cleverly with much hidden meaning, I might add) over a decade ago. Why the sudden excitement?
Those books are for children, though, and cartoons are appropriate for them. And its just the Haggada and the Megilla. These are intended for adults, and its the Torah itself.
I used Korens illustration for my post on countermyth in Tanakh
https://daastorah.substack.com/p/the-events-in-parshas-bereishis-and?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=33pit
Dear Jello Menorah,
I am pleased to see that you are finally addressing the presence and important idea of an illustrated Torah. While I am not familiar with the new Koren version, I do know about R. Crumb's graphic novel version.
However, I want to make you aware that before either of these additions were published, I wrote, designed and illustrated my own version of the Torah,
BETWEEN HEAVEN & EARTH: An Illuminated Torah Commentary that was published in 2009 by Pomegranate Communications. It has been selling worldwide since then. I have illustrated each of the 54 parashiyot and provided a section of commentary ( AfterImages)on each parashah and the reasons why I chose its images. It is a visual midrash, so to speak. It is available both at Amazon and at my online gallery. The links are below:
Amazon: https://a.co/d/04zXFezq
Online Gallery: https://magiceyegallery.com/BookPage.aspx?id=2
When you have a chance, please check it out. I would appreciate your thoughts on it.
Thank you,
Ilene Winn-Lederer
Your fascinating essay entices one to investigate Koren’s offerings further, but gives the appearance of “dissing” R. Crumb in the process. Is this your intent? That would be a most gratuitous, disappointing, and unearned cheap shot. Or, maybe I misread?
Please clarify.