Here - YIVO Institute for Jewish Research

The sacred and monumental air of the exhibition is alsoenhanced by inviting the viewer to climb the staircase“to heaven,” that is—to a small upper gallery dedicatedto films recalling the world of Jewish tradition. Here, anamateur film from the traditional Jewish neighborhoodof Kazimierz in Krakow, is accompanied by scenes fromThe Dybbuk, a 1937 feature film based on the play byS. An-sky. The plot, set within the world of Chassidicbeliefs and legends, reflects the Kabbalistic view of theworld as a single organism that draws its vital energyfrom God. Bringing attention to the spiritual side of Judaictradition is by no means a univocal statement or elegiacaccent. On the contrary, it demonstrates the vitality oftradition. The young Chassidim on the streets of Krakowbelong to a new generation, a part of which still chosereligion in response to the challenges of modernity. TheDybbuk, one of several Yiddish-language films made ininterwar Poland and shown in movie theaters across thecountry, represents the phenomenon of modern Jewishculture, one capable of creatively combining the secularand popular sphere with tradition and religion.past. Both the footage recorded by interwar filmmakersand its artistic retransmission by Forgács are letterswritten from a specific perspective, for a specific purposeand audience. What is common to both of these perspectivesis the desire to capture life, not only in a documentarianand historical fashion, but also in an existentialdimension meant to establish a connection between thefilmed world and those to whom the films are addressed.Rather than being an elegy, Forgács’s installation isa tribute to life. By rediscovering and revising materialfrom the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, the artistinvites us to a rereading and reliving of “letters” from the2627Péter Forgács / The Klezmatics