Mark Podwal’s current three book projects:
A) Illustrations for Heinrich Heine’s unfinished novel THE RABBI OF BACHARACH about a blood libel.
B) A COLLAGE of CUSTOMS – Iconic Jewish Woodcuts Revised for the Twenty-First Century.
C) “THE TALE OF A NIGGUN” will be published November 2020 by Schocken Books.
In the Woodcuts publication Podwal took images of the woodcuts from the Sefer Minhagim, published in 1593 in Venice, and added contemporary items such as a microwave, hair blower, etc. to look as if they were part of the original illustration.
In the book, to be published in spring 2021 by Hebrew Union Collage Press, the original version of the woodcut will appear opposite the collaged image to show what was added.
The Rabbi of Bacharach is the sequel to Podwal’s illustrations for Heinrich Heine’s poems “Hebrew Melodies” published in 2019 by Penn State University Press.
The story of Heine’s Rabbi of Bacharach takes place in 1487, when Rabbi Abraham is celebrating the rites of Passover in Bacharach with his wife Sara and their guests. Two strangers arrive, claiming to be fellow Jews who would like to join the seder. The Rabbi welcomes them but soon realizes that two unknown men had brought a dead baby into the Rabbi’s house so they could accuse the Jews of a ritual murder.
Elie Wiesel’s heartbreaking poem The Tale of a Niggunim is based on an actual event that occurred during World War II.
Illustrated with ten images by Mark Podwal, it will be published November 2020 by Schocken Books.
