3-D KETUBAHS FROM PAGE 50

The flat,

signed layer fits

in through the back of the frame.

marriage documents at the request
couple who had seen her other
religious artwork.
She creates the 3-D effect by
building the decorative areas with
as many as 12 layers that reach an
inch in depth. Working at a comput­
er, she creates designs, prints them
multiple times, cuts the images and

of a

DETROIT

stacks one on top of another.
While the 3-D portions that make
up the border of the document

are

built into the frame, she leaves

space for a flat layer that is signed
by the rabbi, bride, groom and wit­

looks like stained

glass. The process
choosing the variations was very
easy:'
The artist, who keeps her own ke-

of

f"

t

.... ,

._""

<t"

t

".

�,

'f

t".

f

cations

according
preferences.

to each

The artist, whose

couple's

family attends

a

Conservative synagogue, has com­
pleted ketubahs that have romantic

focus, and she has provided Hu­
manistic options for each bride and

emphasizing they

groom

his Southfield wedding in 2012.
"Ours is very colorful, and the center

to'

bride, groom and rabbi.
Ketubah text varies according to
couple. Besides the most traditional,
Orthodox version, there are modifi­

joining together.

hangs in the Windsor living room
of Jessica and Steven Adler, who
connected with Mizrachi-Mallin by
looking for decorative ketubahs on
the Web. Her sites are 3dketubahs.
com and ashrajudaica.com.
"Gabrielle's designs struck us as
being over the top;' says Steven
Adler, who lived in Ypsilanti before

IItID TnItLlID

time for

completed, that layer fits
through the back of the frame,
which has hangers for placement.
"It's all covered with protective
glass to avoid fading;' says the artist,
whose projects have been part of
group showings in Southfield and
Grand Rapids.

One Mizrachi-Mallin ketubah

February 2015

a sitting room and knows
couple placing theirs in a dining
room, asks for six weeks to complete
each order, allowing proofreading

of a

nesses.

Once

52

tubah in

are

equals

"I want to make sure that the
rabbi is involved so that there are no
typo surprises on the wedding day;'
the artist says. "There needs to be

time to cut all the

pieces and build

them, get all the approvals and take

care

of the

shipping:'

Costs for the 3-D versions, num­
bering 25-30 a year, run $600-$700.

"Making Jewish artwork is an
joy;' says Mizrachi-Mallin,

extreme

a

director on the board of the Ameri­
can Guild of Judaic Artists. "It's a

spiritual exercise,

not just a creative

exercise.

"To make

a

ketubah

during such

time in the lives of two

joyous
people is

a

honor and blessing for
hope the process will be
effortless for each couple getting
exactly the ketubah that is

an

me, and I

wanted:' Ry