Hannah Altman‘s exhibition As It Were, Suspended in Midair will be at the Hadassah-Brandeis Institute
February 13, 2025 – June 12, 2025
Kniznick Gallery at the Hadassah-Brandeis Institute (HBI) Epstein Building
Brandeis University
515 South Street Waltham, MA 02454
“In As It Were, Suspended in Midair, Hannah Altman’s photographs examine how Jewish myths are shared, inherited, and reshaped across the diaspora. Altman draws from Yiddish literature and Jewish texts as she situates her female protagonists in lush landscapes and fraught interiors. Animated by sunlight, their postures, gestures, environments, and ritual objects foreshadow abundance and danger. Their mere presence threatens dominant narratives grounded in patriarchal tradition.
Still lifes interject like incantations, offering suspense and new possibilities: a corner knee-deep in salt, a hand mirror submerged in a jar, an open-palmed Baba Yaga puppet – a witch from Slavic folklore who feasted on children. Altman juxtaposes a person’s back with five thick nails puncturing their white garment and a stretched klaf – parchment paper produced from a tanned and kosherized animal inscribed with biblical passages to fit inside a mezuzah. Layering symbols and allusions, Altman builds a world that recasts and transforms Jewish ritual and folklore toward the world ahead.”
Programs:
Cross-Campus Tour | Kniznick Gallery – Rose Art Museum March 6, 12-2 pm | Join for an inspiring afternoon of art and exploration across Brandeis University! Register to attend.
Artist Talk and Book Launch: March 20, 6:30 pm at the Kniznick Gallery and online (6:30 pm EDT). Join artist Hannah Altman for this artist talk and book launch celebrating her solo exhibition and the March 2025 release of her book, We Will Return to You (Saint Lucy Books). Altman will be joined in conversation by photographer and scholar Mark Alice Durant, Publisher and Editor of Saint Lucy Books. | Register to attend at the Kniznick Gallery. | Register to join online.
Through Multiple Lenses, A Passover Inspired Art Conversation: Reimagining Hidden Narratives with Photographer Hannah Altman and Storyteller Miriam Anzovin, March 31, 7 pm at the Kniznick Gallery. Moderated by Maia Lefferman, Brandeis ‘25. More information below. Register to join.