Join us for the exhibition opening of Growing Up Jewish – Art & Storytelling. Through contemporary paintings, Jacquelline Kott-Wolle's work explores the key people, experiences, and community that shaped the artist. The exhibition traces the story of one North American Jewish family through five generations from 1925 to the present.

Paired with the artist’s own narration, the exhibition presents playful images of Jewish holidays, moments at Hebrew school and vacations as well as milestone celebrations marked by the artist’s family through the years. Kott-Wolle’s Jewish identity was informed by the experiences of her parents and grandparents who arrived in Canada in 1949 after the Holocaust. As a member of the ‘Second Generation,’ she reflects on how her forebears faced the enormous task of starting over upon surviving one of modern history’s darkest chapters. The exhibition includes paintings of this colorful cast of characters as they rebuild their lives and flourish in North America’s vibrant Jewish communities. Growing Up Jewish – Art & Storytelling speaks to the resilience of newcomers who must navigate a painful past, contend with tradition and summon optimism for the future.

Growing Up Jewish – Art & Storytelling is a series of contemporary oil paintings and short narratives about Jewish identity in North America. Together with her written reflections on being Jewish, Kott-Wolle takes the viewer on a journey into her grandmother’s kitchen at Passover, her Zeidi’s textile store, her summer camp and more.