TORN: An Exhibition in Honor of the Hostages

Hidden within these abstract artworks lie the stories of Israel's hostages—and of our own experiences in the year they have been gone. Artist Susan Lerner has created her TORN series, 251 lyrical and contemplative collages, inspired both by all of the 251 hostages and by the "Missing" posters seen around New York City. ​

Lerner tells us that she

...started formulating the TORN project in March 2024 as a way to process the atrocities of October 7th in Israel. Kidnapped from Israel posters began appearing on window fronts and scaffolding poles in my neighborhood. Fresh faces of babies, old ladies, girls my daughter's age, and men with young families were carefully hung... but overnight, every night, the posters were slashed, torn, ...violated once again. ...My heart felt torn to pieces. My family raised me to believe 'Never Again,' now 'Again' was staring me down.

Rather than standing idly by, Lerner collected the torn remains of the posters. She "felt a kind of urgency and responsibility" to pay tribute to these fellow humans whose lives were put on hold as they were held by Hamas terrorists in dark tunnels underneath Gaza. Each collage was an opportunity for Lerner's personal meditation, an act of prayer and defiance in response to pure terror.

The word "torn," Lerner reminds us, "has multiple meanings: to cause anguish and distress, to attack without restraint or caution, even finding it difficult to choose between two possibilities." As Jews, we also wear publicly torn ribbons or garments to indicate our status as mourners. As a people, we are all mourning. As a people, we are all torn.

And yet...

These 18 works from the TORN series invite us also to reflect on resilience, re-creation, and possibility in the face of the unknown. They are on view at Central Synagogue between October 7 and October 28, during programs and Shabbat services.

Susan Lerner is a New York City-based hand-cut collage artist. In her prior profession as a Certified Flavor Chemist, Susan ‘collaged’ chemicals into unique flavors but now she uses paper as her medium. She loves the collage process, finding joy in the hunt for imagery, meditation in cutting paper and delight in creating nostalgic compositions. She has shown her work in solo and group exhibitions in the New York City area and in Europe. Her work has been published in numerous periodicals. Susan is the co-founder of the New York Collage Ensemble which promotes a supportive community of like-minded analog collage artists in NYC. Susan’s work can be found at www.mixdmediamashup.com and on Instagram @mixdmediamashup.

This exhibition is presented thanks to the generous support of the Hauptman/Bronfman/Clarick family, in loving memory of Ellen M. Hauptman.
Central Synagogue is grateful to Tama and Brad Bernstein for donating these works to our congregation.

Programs:
Join us on Tuesday, October 15 at 6:00 pm for our TORN Exhibition Artist Talk. Watch the recording here.

Viewing Hours:

Fridays from 7:15–8:00 pm (following Shabbat services)
The exhibition is located in the lower-level Pavilion of our Sanctuary building (652 Lexington Avenue; entrance on 55th Street).

Additional viewings of the exhibition are available during select Israel-related programs through Friday, November 1.

For viewing requests outside of public hours and more information, please contact Marina Bardash Nebro.