A Kabbalah for Architects? New Books Posit a Uniquely Jewish Theory of Building

JEWISH DAILY FORWARD
By Gavriel D. Rosenfeld

Kabbalistic Meaning: In Frank Gehry’s Guggenheim Bilbao

PUBLISHING---Two new books clearly demonstrate how Jewish ideas, themes and experiences have directly impacted the built environment. In his provocative and beautifully illustrated study, “Kabbalah in Art and Architecture,” Alexander Gorlin argues that kabbalistic concepts have deeply influenced the creative work of both Jewish and non-Jewish artists and architects. Fortunately, Israeli architect Stephanie Shosh Rotem’s study provides help in this regard by assessing how the Holocaust’s legacy has influenced postwar museum architecture. Her new book, “Constructing Memory: Architectural Narratives of Holocaust Museums,” discusses the emergence and design of museums devoted to portraying the events of the Nazi genocide. [link]