Roads of Destiny, From Sianai to Russia and Back the Artist’s Vision of the Russian Jewish History

The Jewish Union of Russian Immigrants (JURI), the Council of Jewish Émigré Community Organizations (COJECO), and the restaurant Grille de Paris will be presenting the works of Chava Shtrayhker on Tuesday, October 24th, at 7pm in Grille de Paris. The artist’s extensive and continuous spiritual search has repeatedly been reflected in her painting style. Once purely depictive, her manner has gradually become more reflective. Her artistic philosophy is to see not so much the detail but to focus on the entire picture as a whole. Her desire to learn the truth, brought about by her Jewish roots, and her observance of the commandments serve as themes to many of her paintings.

Brooklyn, NY, October 16th (PRWEB) October 19, 2006 – The Jewish Union of Russian Immigrants (JURI), the Council of Jewish Émigré Community Organizations (COJECO), and the restaurant Grille de Paris will be presenting the works of Chava Shtrayhker on Tuesday, October 24th, at 7pm in Grille de Paris. (For address and directions, please visit the website: www.GrilledeParis.com.) Admission to the event is free.

The artist’s extensive and continuous spiritual search has repeatedly been reflected in her painting style. Once purely depictive, her manner has gradually become more reflective. Her artistic philosophy is to see not so much the detail but to focus on the entire picture as a whole. Her desire to learn the truth, brought about by her Jewish roots, and her observance of the commandments serve as themes to many of her paintings.

“In my works of the last few years, I attempted to combine the past and present of Russian Jews against the background of Jewish history universally. Similarly, I see Jews escaping Egypt and many Russian Jews escaping the slave system of the Soviet Union. The themes of journey, reflection on the past, anticipation of the future that lays ahead, the comprehension of today's situation in Russia, and the bright hope for achieving the long-awaited goal – these are the basic contents of my works today,” said Shtrayhker.

Shtrayhker immigrated to America in 1987 and began to work as a textile designer in numerous large corporations such as Liz Claiborne. During her 10 years in the industry, she faced many challenging assignments. However, with computer technology becoming rampant in every field of business and replacing many jobs previously done by people, she quit her job and organized the art studio Rainbow, where she currently teaches children and adults how to express themselves through painting.

Immediately after immigrating to the U.S., Shtrayhker had the good fortune of having her own personal exhibition, which was only the first in about 10 during her life in America. She began studying Jewish Religion at the First Russian Orthodox Synagogue called Kehilas Moreshes Yaakov, where she is currently the director of the women’s ensemble “Soul String” - famous for its beautiful musical play “Sparks of Light.”

The initiative to present the artist’s work to the public came from the President of JURI, Philip Grobulsky. “Our goal is to present Jewish Culture to the general public. JURI has set forth clear objectives and we hope to accomplish our mission,” stated Gorbulsky.

Jewish Union of Russian Immigrants (JURI) was founded in 1980 as an organization to help Russian-speaking Jewish immigrants from the Soviet Union retrain, resettle, and become integrated into American culture. Today the foundation’s mission is to educate people about Jewish culture and show people Jewish places of historical significance in New York.
Kehilas Moreshes Yaakov Synagogue is the first Russian Orthodox Synagogue in the U.S. Ten years ago, a few Jewish families collaborated with Rabbi Abraham Binsky to open a service that has since grown to include more than 100 families from different parts of New York and countless other states in the U.S. Rabbi Binsky leads his organization with a belief in teaching Jewish traditions. Rebetsin Yahaved Binsky created the women’s theater “Soul String,” which has had great success with the American audiences whether they are religious or social, young or old. Members of the synagogue unite not only because of their Jewish heritage but because of their desire to share and participate in the Russian language, culture, and point-of-view.

For further information please contact: Irina Shmeleva at (201) 321-3372 or i.shmeleva @ via3pr.com.

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