W

endy Evans has long 
presented diverse 
fine arts history 
through the art of presentation. 
Whether in a college classroom, 
an art showplace or a public 
speaking venue, she has told 
the stories behind treasured 
paintings, sculptures, fabrics and 
other media according to differ-
ent themes through creative talks 
supplemented with images.
For many years preceding the 
pandemic, Evans communicated 
in person before art history stu-
dents at Wayne State University, 
Henry Ford Community College 
and the Society of Active 
Retirees (SOAR) locations. 
Throughout 36 years leading 
presentations for visitors at the 
Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA), 
she expanded her topics. 
Since the pandemic, Evans 
turned to virtual platforms to 
introduce popular programs 
planned for specific groups and 
is preparing “
Above Rubies: 
Jewish Women Artists” for 
members and supporters of the 
Eleanor Roosevelt Hadassah 
chapter. It begins at 7 p.m. 
Tuesday, Oct. 26. 
“I call it ‘
About Rubies’ 
because of a quote in the Book 
of Proverbs: ‘Who can find a vir-
tuous woman because her price 
is above rubies,
’” explains Evans, 
adding tongue-in-cheek: “Not all 
the women in this presentation 
are going to be virtuous, and I’m 
not implying that they are.
”
Evans’ Hadassah talk reaches 
from the first-known Jewish 
woman artist, Rachel Olivetti, 
who lived in Italy in the 1600s 
and embroidered Judaica that 
included Torah Ark curtains. It 
moves through the centuries and 
delves into current talents, such 
as Beth Lipman, who forms glass 
into copies of impressive objects 
that are not glass. 
“My presentation is going to 

be very varied,
” Evans says. “I 
need to find good images, so It 
takes a lot of research and a lot of 
it is done online.
”
Evans’ talk expands on the 
growing number of Jewish 
women artists born in the 
1800s. As an example, Florine 
Stettheimer will be represented 
by her painting “Love Flight of 
a Pink Candy Heart,
” showing 
an unusual style that related to 
the artist herself, her family and 
important people in the arts. 
“Stettheimer’s works were not 
Jewish in terms of religion but 
in terms of the people involved,
” 
Evans says. “They’re fun and 
interesting.
”
Artistic expressions of the 
Holocaust also will be covered. 
Esther Krinitz is one artist who 
lived through the Nazi occu-
pation of Poland and created 
embroidered panels to tell her 
story, particularly to her grand-
children. 
“There isn’t such a thing as 
Jewish art or Jewish style,
” Evans 
says. “Jewish artists are impacted 
by the society they’re in at the 
time and what’s gone before. Like 
any other artist, they adapted.
” 
To demonstrate that versa-
tility and adaptation, Evans 
makes sure to include a range of 
approaches. Among the featured 
artists in her upcoming talk will 
be representational photogra-

42 | OCTOBER 7 • 2021 

continued from page XX

Wendy 
Evans

COURTESY WENDY EVANS

COURTESY WENDY EVANS
COURTESY LYNNE AVADENKA

Lynne Avadenka, Huntington 
Woods, seder plate set

Florine Stettheimer, 
‘Cathedrals of Fifth 
Avenue,’ 1931, 
Metropolitan Museum 
of Art, NYC

Hadassah hosts art historian 
to present about Jewish 
women artists. 

Behind the Art

SUZANNE CHESSLER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

ARTS&LIFE
ART

