Kitaj’s Art Golem
Article in the Exhibition Catalogue GOLEM
Tracy Bartley
“Who else would be so foolhardy and unrealistic as to try to conceive a Golem called Jewish Art at this time?”—R.B. Kitaj
As Kitaj grew older in the Los Angeles sunshine, surrounded by his sons and grandsons, he mourned the loss of his beloved wife, Sandra Fisher, and continued his search—questioning, defining, creating—a Jewish Art. Here, in his bright yellow studio, he continued his art-making practice. Driven by a steadfast work ethic and unwavering routine, he would paint and draw and write, every day, creating his Jewish Art.
Kitaj had struggled to define a Jewish Art, stating, “There is no simple definition except to say that a Jewish Art exists in the sense that I will it to exist.”1
A golem is defined as a figure, created from dust or earth by a human, that is brought to life by a specific set of Hebrew letters and ritual incantations. It can be “a helper, a companion a rescuer.” Kitaj’s golem, “Jewish Art,” was brought to life through specifically selected subjects coupled with his ritual of mark-making, of dedicated mornings and afternoons in the studio. His art helped him work through the grief he was suffering, and rescued him from depression he had struggled with all of his life. His art became his companion. (He kissed a portrait of Sandra he kept in his studio, every day, leaving a mark where his lips touched the surface.) Through art, he created his golem—and through his golem, a Jewish Art was born.
Tracy Bartley studied painting and art conservation. Afterwards she was project coordinator at the Getty Conservation Institute in Los Angeles. As an exhibition restorer she gave advice to the exhibition on Charles Ray at the Museum of Contemporary Art. In 1999 she became the personal assistant of the artist Kitaj and is now the head of the R.B. Kitaj Estate.
- Opening quotation: Kitaj, R.B. (2007). Confessions. Unpublished manuscript. Here: Kitaj, R.B. “USC: If my Title was UCS, with would mean that great Jew, the Unconscious” University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA. 20 October 2004. Jerome Nemer Lecture. ↩︎
Golem
R. B. Kitaj, 1980-1981
Oil on canvas, 150.5 x 52.4 cm
Photo: R.B. Kitaj Estate
Citation recommendation:
Tracy Bartley (2016), Kitaj’s Art Golem. Article in the Exhibition Catalogue GOLEM.
URL: www.jmberlin.de/en/node/4712
Online Edition of the GOLEM Catalog: Table of Contents
- The Golem in Berlin: Introduction by Peter Schäfer
- Chapter 1
- The Golem Lives On: Introduction by Martina Lüdicke
- My Light is Your Life: Text by Anna Dorothea Ludewig
- Avatars: Text by Louisa Hall
- The Secret of the Cyborgs: Text by Caspar Battegay
- Chapter 2
- Jewish Mysticism: Introduction by Emily D. Bilski
- Golem Magic: Text by Martina Lüdicke
- Golem, Language, Dada: Text by Emily D. Bilski
- Chapter 3
- Transformation: Introduction by Emily D. Bilski
- Jana Sterbak’s Golem: Objects as Sensations: Text by Rita Kersting
- Crisálidas (Chrysalises): Text by Jorge Gil
- Rituals: Text by Christopher Lyon
- A Golem that Ended Well: Text by Emily D. Bilski
- On the Golem: Text by David Musgrave
- Louise Fishman’s Paint Golem: Text by Emily D. Bilski
- Chapter 4
- Legendary Prague: Introduction by Martina Lüdicke
- Golem Variations: Text by Peter Schäfer
- Rabbi Loew’s Well-Deserved Bath: Text by Harold Gabriel Weisz Carrington
- Chapter 5
- Horror and Magic: Introduction by Martina Lüdicke
- Golem and a Little Girl: Text by Helene Wecker
- The Golem with a Group of Children Dancing: Text by Karin Harrasser
- Bringing the Film Set To Life: Text by Anna-Carolin Augustin
- Golem and Mirjam: Text by Cathy S. Gelbin
- Chapter 6
- Out of Control: Introduction by Emily D. Bilski
- Golem—Man Awakened with Glowing Hammer: Text by Arno Pařík
- Dangerous Symbols: Text by Charlotta Kotik
- Be Careful What You Wish For: Text by Marc Estrin
- Chapter 7
- Doppelgänger: Introduction by Martina Lüdicke
- From the Golem-Talmud: Text by Joshua Cohen
- Current page: Kitaj’s Art Golem: Text by Tracy Bartley
- The Golem as Techno-Imagination?: Text by Cosima Wagner
- See also
- GOLEM: 2016, online edition with selected texts of the exhibition catalog
- GOLEM: 2016, complete printed edition of the exhibition catalog, in German
- Golem. From Mysticism to Minecraft: Online Feature, 2016
- GOLEM: Exhibition, 23 Sep 2016 to 29 Jan 2017