The exhibition presents contemporary works related to the two main commandments for Purim – sending gifts of food to one another (mishloach manot) and gifts to the poor.

Some of the works are the actual mishloach manot vessels while others are artistic interpretations of this custom. Maimonides’ declaration stressing the importance of gifts to the poor over mishloach manot is represented in the several works presented.

Historical artistic works include Purim plates specifically made for mishloach manot, such as those from France and Germany in the 18^th century and Israel at the beginning of the 20^th century. The privately owned plates were usually decorated with pictures and verses from the Book of Esther and from rabbinic midrashim. The contemporary works exhibited here are in dialogue with traditional images but also integrate new motifs such as: local politics, memories and childhood games, the concept “Made in China,” and ecological aspects.

Ayelet Weil- Nebensal’s composition relates playing a game with a ball, thrown through the strings from one player to the other, to the back and forth of mishloach manot. Burying candies inside a hard material questions the advisability of breaking it open, which would result in both sweetness and destruction.
Avi Biran created a mishloach manot container composed of ten spoons decorated with unique masks representing Haman’s ten sons. The spoons are hung on a handle hinting at the tree branch upon which Haman’s sons were hung.
Inspired by the luxurious fabrics worn at the feast mentioned in the Book of Esther and in the liturgical hymn Shoshanat Yaakov, Zohar Jolles creation displays three miniature embroidered robes with pockets and buttons to be used for wine bottles. One robe made from a blue work shirt is dedicated to workers.
Renana Tzur crafted foldable carton containers, similar to those used for Chinese take-away food, with a matching paper bag. This work relates to the consumer culture and the common label “Made in China.”
Nofar Daskal combines two holiday customs into one – a queen costume in the evening with mishloach manot in the morning. Pinchas Green links ancient and modern materials. With 21^st century technology one can produce an endless number of similar but different plates. The use of recyclable material also suggests the elimination of the shipment’s contents.
Meirav Peleg substituted paper designs for the traditional foods in her mishloach manot, which can be sent via the post.
Arik Weiss’s mishloach manot relates to recent events: insufficient blood units following a fatal injury (“for the blood is the life” Deut 12:23). It contains two blood units (Arik Weiss + and Arik Weiss – ) expressing the desire to give to friends and even to strangers.
-Childhood memories of the plain serving dishes at her kibbutz in the 1970s inspired Thehila Shemesh’s mishloach manot. Indeed, birthday bags and fancy mishloach manot were only given in the city. Her work highlights the uniform and simple mishloach manot on the kibbutz, evoking sweet and salty memories.
Sharon Binder relates to the motif of concealment in the Book of Esther and in hamantashen. For her mishloach manot, she created a bed of flowers inspired by the flowers blooming in Israel during the time of Purim.
Ruth Schreiber prepared a mishloach manot made from the most fundamental food item – a loaf of bread, with salt. The combination of salt and bread has many levels of association: both Hebrew words have the same letters although arranged differently; bread and salt also appear in many Jewish and popular stories and customs.

Curators: Dov Abramson and Shira Friedman