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The Exhibition
South Carolina’s early Jews did not enter into an established culture; they were among the pioneers who created a new society. Subsequent generations of immigrants came into a situation where Jews already were a part of the social order, in an environment where both Jews and gentiles saw one another as less “different” than they did elsewhere. A Portion of the People contradicts familiar notions about southern culture by demonstrating that, from its very beginnings in the 17th century, Carolina was a mix of national, ethnic, religious, and racial groups. Of special interest is the relationship between Jews and African Americans. In a colony and state with an enslaved black majority, Jews found themselves on the privileged side of the racial divide.

Party for Carolee Rosen’s first birthday, 1931.
Courtesy of the Jewish Heritage Collection.
 

The exhibition turns on events that compelled southern Jews to ask what it means to be a Jew, a southerner, an American. The War for Independence, the birth of Reform Judaism, the Civil War, the arrival of Russian and other eastern European Jews, the Holocaust, the creation of the State of Israel, the Civil Rights Movement — all were moments when public issues and private lives intersected and people had to choose among competing allegiances.

The final gallery of A Portion of the People leaps into the present. It features a portfolio of new work by acclaimed photographer Bill Aron, who has made his life’s mission documenting Jewish communities around the world. In October 2000 Aron spent several weeks in South Carolina making large-format, black and white images of contemporary Jewish life. The strength of his work is not only in creating a true likeness of his subjects, but in communicating through his art a feeling of values recognized and affirmed, an atmosphere of wonder and surprise, of humor and warmth. His South Carolina photographs reflect on major developments of the past 50 years, including material gains in the era of post-war prosperity, the trend toward more traditional religious observance, and a heightened sense of service and community.

Avram Aizenman, Myrtle Beach    Reuben Greenberg, Charleston 
Photos by Bill Aron. October 2000. Jewish Heritage Collection. 
 

The exhibit occupies three thousand square feet and includes over two hundred paintings and artifacts drawn from South Carolina and across the United States. Many of these objects are being shown publicly for the first time. Text panels set objects in historical context while boldly presenting major ideas and defining moments. Audio segments, selected from the Jewish Heritage Collection’s archives of more than three hundred interviews, bring the first-person singular into play. Visitors can listen to short stories about the creative and sometimes painful compromises southern Jews have made. Punctuated by humor and regret, gaiety and sorrow, these voices deepen the emotional impact of the exhibition.

Several publications accompany the show. A free gallery guide pilots visitors through the exhibit. An hour-long video documentary called Land of Promise vividly records the struggles and successes of Jewish settlers in a culture that is overwhelmingly Christian. A full-color catalogue, published by the University of South Carolina Press, showcases objects, explores core themes, and provides a narrative history of southern Jewish life. Edited by Theodore and Dale Rosengarten, with a preface by Eli N. Evans and essays by Jenna Weissman Joselit, Deborah Dash Moore, Jack Bass, and exhibition curator Dale Rosengarten, the catalogue is an important addition to American arts and letters. Additional resources, including documents and treasures from the oral history archives, are available at the Jewish Heritage Collection’s web site at the College of Charleston.