DESCRIPTION: In this whimsical work the artist includes mystical secrets. Each part of the grapevine symbolizes different elements of Jewish people. The cluster indicates the scholars; the branches refer to those who support Torah; the leaves allude to those who work the land. The totality of the grapevine produces wine and sends the powerful message that despite external differences the Jewish people possess a common element that "gladdens the heart of G-d and man".

DETAILS: There are many details that are hard to see in a small photograph but add to the beauty and meaning of this artwork.

At the top of the border the Hebrew word Gefen appears.

Nestled in the branches of the grapevine are houses, one of which sports a Mezuza and the words Supporters of Torah.

Gated branches serve as pathways.

A ladder juts out of the grapes with a man on top of it who seems to have picked a grape. Next to the ladder is a sign stating Menchniks at work, a play on both the Artist's name and the Yiddish word Mench. The man hoists a grape over the border that rolls down and lands into a long winding tunnel decorated with Kiddush cups. The grape is eventually deposited into the Wine Factory -- an efficient system!

The grapes hang over rolling green hills with gardens, houses, kiddush cups, and the wine factory at bottom left. In front of it is a jug labeled Ancient Wine which is being filled by two canisters, one of which is labeled Hot Wine and the other Cold Wine.

On the right hand side are houses with people on the balconies watching the activity. Some sort of contraption (a hot air balloon in the shape of the top of a spice box?) floats by with the words Wise Menchniks on it. Through the window you see two men learning.

There are 4 Kiddush cups, each with a letter from the Hebrew Alef Bet, at the bottom which probably signifies the 4 cups of wine at the Passover Seder.

A staircase leads to the ornamental gate with a Mezuza and Torah on top of it, at the entrance of this garden. On both sides of the staircase is a banner with words that combine to say The wine enters... and the secrets come out, a verse from the Talmud. To portray this idea the artist has three Kiddush cups with the Hebrew letters for Wine leading into the garden and three Kiddush cups with the Hebrew letters for Secret leading out of the garden.

ARTIST INFORMATION: Today's renaissance of the traditional Jewish lifestyle has been accompanied by the blossoming of a multi-faceted Chasidic art movement. Michoel Muchnik, among the foremost Chassidic artists, has gained prominence with his joyfully imaginative renderings in acrylics, watercolors, and original lithographs. He frequently combines his delicate use of color and fine line work into a story book motif. Even at its most mystical, a Muchnik painting is inexplicably familiar.

Born in Philadelphia in 1952, Muchnik received his artistic training at Rhode Island School of Design. He later studied at the Rabbinical College of America, in Morristown, New Jersey.

Muchnik has staged exhibits of his original paintings, bas-relief mosaics and lithographs throughout the world. His originals have been displayed at the Brooklyn Museum, the Goldman Arts Gallery in Washington, D.C., Yeshiva University Museum in New York, Dansforth Museum in Massachusetts, the Sydney Jewish Museum and the Sharei Tzedek Collection in Israel.