Chef jackets become art at pop-up exhibit benefiting the displaced
Illustrators and chefs are paired in ‘Three Spoons of Oil and Two Brushes,’ a weeklong event at Tel Aviv’s ANU – Museum of the Jewish People
Jessica Steinberg, The Times of Israel's culture and lifestyles editor, covers the Sabra scene from south to north and back to the center
A pop-up exhibit at Anu — Museum of the Jewish People, pairing known culinary figures with leading illustrators, was conceived following a massive donation of chef jackets.
“Three Spoons of Oil and Two Brushes” brings together 14 pairs of creators, with each illustrator utilizing the jackets as an alternative canvas to describe the personality and characteristics of the chef they were paired with.
The pop-up exhibit opened on September 6 and will appear through September 10.
During the first weeks of the war following the October 7 Hamas terrorist attack, culinary apparel company Chef Works partnered with Foodish, Anu’s culinary wing, seeking to help chefs, caterers, restaurants and bakers affected by the onslaught in the south and massive evacuation from the north following threats from Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Chef Works donated thousands of aprons, chef hats, jackets and pants to cooks, bakers and chefs in need from the north and south.
While much of the donated goods were given away, the museum created the pop-up exhibit to continue raising awareness and funds for the residents from Israel’s north and south.
Zeev “Shoshke” Engelmayer painted pomegranates above Yisrael Aharoni’s bald pate, Itzik Rennert brought together falafel and American and Israeli flags for dual national chef Michael Solomonov, while Eyal Shani’s pompadoured hair was drawn by Michel Kichka along the base of his jacket, with painted tomatoes running up his sleeves.
Other pairings included culinary maven Michal Ansky and illustrator Sergey Iskaov, restaurateur Ruti Broudo and illustrator Anat Warshavsky, chef Haim Cohen and artist Michal Dubois, culinary influencer Jake Cohen and illustrator Nurit Gross, Jewish food doyenne Joan Nathan and artist Hadas Hayon, chef Raz Rahav and artist Keren Shpilsher, chef Moshik Roth and illustrator Maya Ish-Shalom, culinary writer Ruti Russo and illustrator Amit Trainin and others.
The museum scheduled a series of events for the exhibition, including a meeting between Engelmayer and Aharoni on September 9, and an apron painting workshop with illustrators Michal Dubois and Anat Warshavsky on September 10.
The pieces featured in the exhibition will be available for purchase at a special sale, with proceeds going to food therapy activities for evacuated senior citizens and youth from the north and south. Images created for the exhibit were also printed on calendars, notebooks and aprons, and are available for purchase.
Entrance to the exhibition is included in the price of visiting the museum.
