The 2020 HBI Artist Exhibition, Ich Bin Di Sitra Achra (I Am the Other), created by Shterna Goldbloom opened March 4 with a public reception and artist talk. HBI is proud to share the work of Goldbloom, which highlights her complicated relationship with the religious community of her childhood.
During her visit, Goldbloom met with Brandeis undergraduates to discuss her journey, exhibition and artistic process. Goldbloom’s wistful photographic self-portraits bridge memories and experiences of the artist’s own Hasidic upbringing, with historical and invented personae. Additional class tours are planned.
Goldbloom reinterprets the Hasidic term “Sitra Achra,” used to describe things considered to be on the “other side” of holiness — like queers and women who don’t fit traditional definitions of femininity. In “Ich Bin Di Sitra Achra (I Am the Other),” the artist presents the many faces that can exist between tradition and heresy. Her gesture before the camera makes these conflicting identities visible, giving agency to those who might otherwise be obscured.
Ich Bin Di Sitra Achra (I Am the Other): Kniznick Gallery until July 3, Monday through Friday, 9 am to 4 pm.
