A carousel horse with a raised head was carved by Charles Carmel with fish scales, feathers and, improbably, a pistol on his flank. He is jeweled and has glass eyes and an open mouth with imposing teeth.
:From the solemnity of the tabernacle to the tinny tunes of the carousel comes a seemingly unlikely association, yet there is a common thread, one that bespeaks the unsurpassed artistic Jewish carving traditions in America during the late Nineteenth and early Twentieth Centuries.
Immigrant Jewish artisans who arrived in America in the late Nineteenth Century were imbued in the Eastern and Central European skills and traditions of woodcarving. Schooled in the art of carving horses, eagles, foliage and fruit for Torah Arks and gravestones, these artists expanded their mediums, creating fanciful figures for the newly burgeoning carousel industry. "Gilded Lions and Jeweled Horses: The Synagogue to the Carousel," on view at the American Museum of Folk Art (AFAM) through March 23, explores the traditions of this select group of carvers through their religious and fanciful works.
"More than two decades have passed since this artistic terrain was first explored," states Gerald Wertkin, AFAM's director emeritus, in the foreword of the Gilded Lions and Jeweled Horses book. "If anything, that terrain seems even more hallowed today. It is an appropriate moment to return, to explore further and, once again, to marvel."
AFAM first explored Jewish folk traditions with the widely acclaimed 1984 exhibition "The Jewish Heritage in American Folk Art," jointly organized with The Jewish Museum. Artist and scholar Murray Zimiles was inspired to continue researching Jewish folk art in both Europe and America; the new exhibition, catalog and corresponding book, Gilded Lions and Jeweled Horses: The Synagogue to the Carousel, are the result of more than 20 years of efforts for AFAM's guest curator.
An imposing 36-by-48-inch Decalogue with lions and a large crown was carved around 1882 by an unknown artist, probably in Ohio. The ferocity of the lions, their rolling tongues and Medusa-like manes appears again and again in religious imagery and carousel figures.
Many of the new arrivals settled in New York's Lower East Side and Brooklyn and initially found work carving for neighborhood synagogues. At the same time, the carousel industry had gained a significant place in America, and with the emergence of street cars that placed amusement parks at the end of the line, further opportunities for talented carvers were created. In New York City, Coney Island and its carousel workshops became just a streetcar ride away for talented carvers.
In New York and Philadelphia, where immigrants arrived from locations with strong carving traditions, such as Germany, Italy and Eastern Europe, carousels became highly popular and the shops that produced them prospered.
The earliest carousels in the United States appeared around 1825, although it was not until 1867 that Gustav Dentzel built his first carousel. Charles I.D. Looff, a Danish-born immigrant, was commissioned to produce his first carousel for Coney Island, going into operation in 1876 with a well received group of highly realistic animals. Over the course of his life, Looff created about 40 carousels, several roller coasters and Ferris wheels, and the Santa Monica Pier.
