Fashion Show & Closing Night Party March 27, 2008

Levi Okunov’s fashion show with video projections by Melissa Shiff and a live mix by Diwon. Other musical guests include Smadar and Y-Love. Open vodka bar (21+) generously sponsored by Christiania Vodka.

Fashion designer Levi Okunov is one of the fashion industry’s rising stars. His Fall 2008 line, which features pieces inspired by The Jewish Museum’s renowned Torah Art and Hanukkah lamp collections, incorporates materials such as velvet and parchment to suggest textures and forms associated with traditional Judaica. The lining of several pieces feature stenciled and painted texts by the 13th century Persian poet Rumi translated into English, Arabic, and Yiddish. These passages represent the artist’s wish for religious tolerance and cultural co-existence.His collaborators on the project include hair stylist, Almog, fabric desinger Sharon Ascher, crown designer Käthe Wenzel, makeup artist Linda Mason, and painter Rita Ackermann.

Open vodka bar (21+) generously sponsored by Christiania Vodka.

Born in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, Levi Okunov began sewing at the age of 15 and presented his first collection at 19. A former apprentice to Marc Jacobs, Okunov’s work has been featured in Women’s Wear Daily and The New York Times.

Melissa Shiff is a video, performance, and installation artist whose work has been shown at the National Museum of Photography, Film and Television (UK), Toronto Jewish Film Festival, Museum of Jewish Heritage, and other venues. Her work is in the Jewish Museum’s permanent collection. In collaboration with Okunov, video artist Melissa Shiff will project JAMS: The Jewish Animated Mandala Series using the Hebrew God’s seven names and imagery from the museum’s traditional Judaica collection. JAMS are a hybrid of traditional calligraphic mizrachs, Jewish ritual objects that orient the worshipper towards Jerusalem, and Tibetan mandalas, symbols of the universe that aid in meditation.

Diwon is a multicultural maestro who produces a mix of Yemenite and Sephardic music blended with electro/hip-hop beats. The artist’s stage name refers to the Yemenite diwan, a book of devotional songs recited on the Sabbath and at Jewish life cycle events. He frequently collaborates with non-electronic musicians, fusing live and recorded sound. He has performed with Lou Reed, Anthony Coleman, Daniel Carter, DJ Spooky, Matisyahu, MC Paul Barman, Idan Raichel, and others. In addition to providing a live mix to Okunov’s fashion show, Diwon will premiere a new composition created during his Off the Wall residency entitled “That Yemenite Kid.”

An exciting new voice emerging from the NYC world music scene, Smadar is an Israeli-Moroccan singer whose craft is best described as pan-Mediterranean music peppered with a gypsy sound. Smadar sings original and creative renditions of traditional tunes in Hebrew, Arabic, and Ladino.

Describing his style as “global hip hop,” Y-Love seamlessly intertwines English, Arabic, Hebrew, Latin and ancient Aramaic. He combines ethereal scripture with gritty social consciousness, reflecting his own life-changing conversion to Hasidism. He has graced the stage with luminaries as varied and respected as Lou Reed, DJ Spooky, Hadag Nachash, Matisyahu, Steinski, and Immortal Technique.

Official Website: http://www.thejewishmuseum.org/offthewall/about-off-the-wall/