Draft:Nechama Golan

Nechama Golan (born 1947) is an Israeli artist, sculptor, and photographer. Her work is centered around the intersection between religiously observant Judaism and women's issues. She identifies herself as a "religious feminist" artist and highlights that her conception of feminism does not entail gender equality in the Western sense, but honors the roles of women within an Orthodox society. Her style is a blend between "thought, technique, and aesthetics." Golan advocates for mutual respect between humans, no matter their religion—her piece about Muslim-Jewish interfaith relations, entitled "Messengers of Peace," was included in the Dr. Fischer Art for Peace collection.

Life
Golan was brought up secularly in military housing. Her father's family, from Poland, lost many relatives in the Holocaust. Her mother emphasized the importance of art and music. Golan explains that her love for art was "inherited" from her environment. When she was twelve, Golan's parents divorced. As a result, she turned to prayer for support.

Before attending higher education, Golan had two daughters and served in the military. Golan graduated from the Avni Institute of Art and Design of Tel-Aviv in 1980 with a degree in Art Studies. Afterward, she began to observe Orthodox Jewish practice. Her process of learning to live in accordance with Jewish law provoked a five year hiatus from the art world. She resumed her public creative process in 1990. Golan states, "I acquired my artistic education in a 'secular body,' and when I came to fulfill it I was in a 'religious body.'" In 1996, she earned a degree in Jewish Philosophy from Bar-Ilan University.

Religious Influences
Using the Torah's mandate against depicting human figures, Golan determines whether a certain piece of her art is permissable. She also buries the sacred texts she utilizes in her work in accordance with Jewish law.

Work
Golan's piece "You Shall Walk in Virtuous Paths," is a sculpture consisting of a high-heeled shoe covered in copies of pages from Tractate Kiddushin of the Talmud. Through it, she highlights the contrast between the heel's capacity for female objectification and the sacred text's holiness.

Her works are often studied in Israeli high school classrooms.