From the Central Wyoming College CONNECT Newspaper
It is not just about laughing at someone, or laughing with someone. Laughter can be a sign of joy or laughing can be ridicule.
"Laughter is a feeling," says Central Wyoming College Art Professor Nita Kehoe-Gadway, who extensively researched laughter to prepare for the creation of art pieces for an international exhibit that opened this summer in Israel.
Nita and the other artists were motivated by one single word: "Yitzhak". "Yitzhak" was left to the artist's imagination and could be any person with the name Yitzhak or Isaac, could portray stories or situations in the bible or modern life, or could be the Hebrew word Yitzhak meaning laughter.
This single word inspired the artists to create paintings, sculptures, photographs, dances and songs that, despite their distinctly varied appearances, are connected by culture and purpose. Nita was one of 14 American artists selected to participate in the creative cultural encounter with Israeli artists that resulted in a multimedia event held this summer in the ancient Israeli city of Akko in Western Galilee.
A goal of Project Yitzhak was to use art and creativity as a tool to enhance people-to-people relations. It was used as a language for fostering dialogue.
Nita's art is fueled by her fascination with the human form and she researched the holdings of the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian to find out how laughter affects the body. She also researched the biblical stories of Isaac, and the kinds of laughter that resulted from his miraculous birth; first by the laughter of joy because his 90-year-old mother was finally able to become pregnant, and the laughter of relief when God spared his father Abraham from sacrificing his only son to prove his faith. She also looked at stories from different cultures that make people laugh.
Nita was also captivated by a book written by a rabbi that connects the Jewish religion and culture to "an anatomical, scientific way of looking at things".
"Laughter is a universal gesture that is understood in any language or culture. Today's world is very split into many languages, cultures, races, and creeds. I believe that laughter can be a unifying force to our world or it can be a taunting farce that rips us apart."
Kehoe-Gadway first became familiar with Project Yitzhak when researching ways of putting on an international exhibit at CWC. The organization of the Yitzhak Project was given to her as an example as it generated considerable interest worldwide.
It piqued Nita's interest, as well. She submitted a proposal that was first reviewed by a committee in Canton, Ohio, and then by the main committee in Israel. She was selected on the merits of her proposal and past art work rather than by her religious and cultural background. She created six paintings and six sculptures that combined the "science of laughing with the spirit of emotion".
With support from CWC professional development funds and a stipend from the Yitzhak partnership, Kehoe-Gadway traveled a great deal to prepare for the culminating Yitzhak International Arts Gathering in June.
The honor of being selected to participate was "huge" for the small college art professor. "It's been a life changing event on many different levels," she said. Not only does she approach the development of a body of art work more cohesively, the cross-cultural exchange of ideas was priceless.
Nita and husband, Aaron, became immersed in the Israeli culture during their one-month stay and found it to be a much healthier lifestyle. The people in Israel were very friendly and helped the Americans find their ways on trains; decipher menus and so much more. "I've never been so welcomed in my entire life," Nita said, noting that being in Israel felt "very safe. Even though you were among strangers, you were among friends."
Another memorable experience for the couple was being invited to the home of an Israeli artist, who was the father of two girls, ages 18 and 16. Male or female, 18-year-old Israelis are required to join the military, which according to Gadway makes their teenagers mature quickly.
Mostly, her art work was influenced by the experience. As a result of being selected to participate in the international exhibit, her art work is on exhibit in Targu Mures, Romania, a valley below the Carpathian Mountains. She credits the administration at CWC for giving her the flexibility that allows her the time to do the exhibitions in various places in this country and the world.
This November, the Project Yitzhak exhibit travels to Canton, Ohio, where there will be a similar gathering of American and Israeli artists.
Nita has scheduled the exhibit to come to the Robert A. Peck Arts Center Gallery at CWC in the fall of 2006. She has also invited two Ohio artists, one a stone carver and the other a fiber artist, to create a piece specifically for the gallery. An Israeli photographer, Yochanan Michon, has also been invited to campus to interact with student and community members.