Exhibition: “Yearning to Breathe: The Art of Siona Benjamin”

Fordham Libraries and Fordham’s Center for Jewish Studies present the art of Siona Benjamin.

As a Bene Israel Jewish woman from India now living in the United States, Siona Benjamin is a Jewish artist creating cross-cultural and transcultural art. Her perspective bridges the traditional and the modern and sparks discourse across cultures. Having grown up in a predominantly Hindu and Muslim society in India, where she was educated in Catholic and Zoroastrian schools and raised Jewish, Benjamin always has been reflecting on cultural boundary zones.

Her perspective remains transcultural and multicultural at heart, combining the imagery of her past with the role she plays in America today. Her art is a kaleidoscope of images inspired by illuminated manuscripts and multicultural mythology. The blue-skinned characters are a signature feature of Benjamin’s paintings. She sees them as self-portraits of sorts through which she explores ancient and contemporary dilemmas. These characters become symbols of a timeless global identity free of prejudices and boundaries.

Benjamin is originally from Mumbai and currently lives and works in Montclair, New Jersey. Her work reflects her background of being brought up Jewish in a predominantly Hindu and Muslim India. In her paintings, she combines the imagery of her past with the role she plays in America today, making a mosaic inspired by both Indian miniature paintings and Jewish and Christian illuminated manuscripts.

The art is on view at the Henry S. Miller Judaica Research Room at the Walsh Family Library on the Rose Hill campus and at Quinn Library on the Lincoln Center campus.