How United States Culture is affected by or intersects with Israel/Palestine

People have utilized artistic creations to entertain themselves, to express their ideas, and to convey stories about their past throughout the history of the world. Additionally, political purposes have been served via the use of artistic creations like paintings, literature, and photographs. They are thus instruments for telling tales of war and democracy.
Different artists in Israel have used their works of art to inform people about the suffering of Jews around the world. Through their art, musicians like Ka-Tzetnik and Ori Gersht have been highly outspoken individuals. This paper explores the different artists in Palestine who have used their work in the defense of the Israelis and how these have influenced the US culture.
Uses of Art
Art has been in existence in the world for a very long period of time. Around the world. Art can be classifies into different categories. First there is Visual Arts. This kind of art is involved with the creation of images and models of various forms. Activities found in this category include: sculpture making, architecture and other works that are for beauty, all forms of visual media, photography works and painting. Another category of arts is the performing arts .This includes music, theatre performances, and all types of dances, film making and works of literature. All these forms of art display different themes as per the needs of the artist.
There are many uses of art in the world today. Mimesis is the use of art to depict reality. As such artists design works that show the real situation in their environment such as war, mountains and other famous landmarks of their time. Again they make paintings and sculpture of famous people of their life time such as political or religious leaders. Likewise art is used as medium through which one is able to an express their personal feelings and opinions. Thus art is a tool of communication.in this case, it is used to pass information across different cultures and different time periods.
Another use of art is showing religion beliefs, science and cultural aspects. For instance, the great mosque of Kaivouan in Tunisia is of great architectural design in honor of the Islam religion. In Europe and India, churches and temples are decorated with amazing paintings and sculptures to show the value that the people attach to religion. In addition, different cultures have expressed their cultural practices through traditional music and dance.in connection to this, art also serves n. As a tool for entertainment. Different genres of music, poems and theater performances have been used as recreational tools throughout the history of man.
Again art is a vehicle for change. It is used to advocate for democracy in different countries, for example street graffiti is used for this purpose. Different works of art are used to air the oppressions people suffer under dictators of the effects of war on different groups of people in the society. Dances and music are used as tools for rebellion against oppressive regimes and are used to give the citizens a wakeup call. Different works of art such as the Jupiter's Eagle have been used by man to express the unknown which is considered mysterious. Also, it is used to express imagination and talk about phenomena that affect man that he does not fully understand such as death.
On top of this, artistic works are a tool to preserve history in different cultures. People paint, record in literature, and show in dance and tell in songs he important occurrences in their history. These are passed down from one generation to the next to ensure that it is not forgotten.
The uses of art have evolved through different ages in relation to the change in the culture of human beings. As such in the 20th and 21st century, art is used for commercial purposes. Talented artists perfect their works and sell them to willing buyers.as a matter of fact, this is a lucrative business since some tycoons around the world are willing to pay millions of dollars to acquire great works of art.as such art is used to show the economic class that one belongs to. Notably, its use will still change with the generations to come as knowledge and technology advance.
Interactions between Israelites and the US Citizens
Since the formation of the Israel modern nation, the country has had very close ties with the US. Therefore the cultural interactions between the countries have been taking place since then and the US population has been influenced by these interactions. As a result, the food and religious beliefs of the Israelites have been assimilated into the American culture. Through the assimilation of the biblical beliefs and culture into the U.S culture, the impact of the Jewish influence in this country is seen even up to the present day (Ken, par 4-12) On top of this, there are many Israelites living in the US who came into the countries as refugees. These have influenced the way of life of the people living around them. They have intermarried with the people of they found in this country and led to the integration of their culture into the daily lives of American citizens.
Again the spread of the artistic works of the Israelites into all parts of the world including the US has greatly influenced its perception of the Jews. These works of art are used by the people of Israel with the support of their government to talk about the problems faced by the Nation of Israel. The US citizens who have studied them have changed their beliefs about peace and justice.
Israeli Artists
Israel as a country has many great artists who use their work to show the suffering of the people. Among the first artists of the modern Israel nation is Eliezer Ben -Yehuda. He was born in a small village named Luzhky in Lithuania in 1858. As a young man, he witnessed many revolutions in the world such as the French revolution and the Bulgarian revolutions in which people of different countries advocated for their recognition as a nation and fought for their culture. Given that during his childhood years the Jews were scattered all over the world, he was inspired by these revolutions to start a campaign that the Jews should go back to their homeland and start using their Hebrew language for communication.
In his profession as a newspaper reporter and editor he wrote many articles that talked about the suffering of the Jews around the world. In addition he wrote about the danger of extinction that the Hebrew language was facing. He started advocating for the use of the language by the Jews in their communication.as such he is known as the father of spoken Hebrew in the modern world.
In his writings, Eliezer campaigned for the formation of the Israel Nation. He encouraged Jews from different parts of the world to unite and fight for their country of origin so that they could reposes it and have self-rule. As a matter of fact, his writings formed the backbone on which the Jewish nation was formed and many politians in the country still rely on his ideologies up-to-date.
Another Jewish artist who spoke about the suffering of the Jews is Ka-Tzetnik. Born as Yehiel Feiner in 1917 in Poland, he was a vocal person about the problems that his people faced during the holocaust (Independent, par 1). This artist was a survivor of the holocaust and has written many books that tell the suffering of the Israelis during this time. Even though his works are fictional, they are based on his personal experience in Auschwitz in concentration camps. In his writings, he gives the horrific experience of death in the camps. Many people were killed in Hitler's gas chambers. In addition, the Jews were tortured in many ways as described by this writer.in his book. House of Dolls, he suggests that there was sexual abuse because German soldiers used the Jewish women as sex slaves. There was also cannibalism and sexual harassment of young boys (Independent, par.3-8).His work describes the manner in which his people were stripped off their human dignity before they were killed in Nazi-Germany.
His experience during the holocaust gave him motivation to tell the world about what had happened. At one time, he was called to give a testimony against the perpetrators but could not since he fainted during the session. This writer had many nightmares and psychological torture because of his experience in Aushchuwiz.
In the 21st century there are many artists of Israeli origin all over the world who use their work to give their opinion of the state of peace in Israel .One of these artists is Ori Gersht. He was born in Tel Aviv. He is a photographer and video artists. He uses art to depict the themes of beauty, death and romance. In some of his works he created beautiful floral designs only to blow them as a way of showing how peace and death are so near to each other. In addition, he has put his efforts into photographing and films historical sites such as Auchwiz (Guliverlooks, pg.1).One of his famous works is 'A Matter of Life and death'.
Another artists of the modern world who originates from Israel is Ilit Azoulay. She is a skilled photographer who uses her work to tell the world about the effects of the Palestine war on the Jews. One of her woks is Beauty among the Ruins. In this work, she went around Tel Aviv collecting images of various objects in the city after an encounter of war. Bringing them to her studio, she put these images together in her studio to come up with one piece (Moriarty, par 2)
Similarly, Larry Abramson is an artists who use his work to criticize the war in the Palestinian area and the Israel government's agenda of wiping out people of Palestinian identity from the region. This artist was born in South Africa and has done great works such as 'the Realist and the Critic'. In his series of the Tsooba, he painted the ruins near Kiddutz Tzova in reality to criticize the Israeli government (Moriarty, par 5).
By using the work of art, these individuals have been able to explain the adverse effects of war. These include: death, destruction of cities and psychological problems on the survivors. In addition, they have been able to express their opinions on war and peace .Their stories help the world to understand the plight of the people of Israel and give them a call to action to help them resolve the conflict in the area.in addition the stories of Ka-Tzetnik have been adopted into the education systems of many countries to teach the young generations the adverse consequences of racial discrimination.
How Israeli Art intersects with American Culture:
In the whole world, the works of art have been of great influence to the cultures of different countries (Dallas, pg 78). For instance, William Shakespeare was a great artist who was able to influence the whole world through his writings. Again, a person's perspective throughout their life is greatly determined by the works of art and the culture that he was exposed to during his formation years (childhood and early teenage.).
In the same context, the works of art from Israel influence the U.S culture in many ways. For instance, the paintings and stories of suffering and death trigger emotions and feelings of empathy among the people ( Command Cause Foundations, par 9-11). It causes them to reflect on and appreciate their rights and freedoms they enjoy such as the right to life. In addition it gives them a chance to critically think about the suffering of people in the war crisis in Palestine which has led to the death of thousands of innocent people. As such, it influences them to advocate for peace in Israel and the Middle East.
On top of this it helps them to treat the refugees in their country in a humane way. Since they have an understanding of the trauma these refugees have experienced, they are able to help them overcome their problems and help them get integrated in the U.S. community. Further, these artistic works enlighten Americans on the value of peace. Henceforth, they will be able to avoid occasions that lead to the disruption of the peace that the country enjoys.
Also, works of art teach positive human values to the audience. Works that stand against negative values, such as the attempt to wipe out the people of Palestine from the Middle East by the Israel government, emphasize on the importance of preservation of human life. Thus the U.S citizens are taught good values that help them to coexist peaceful with each since the country has citizens from different parts of the world.
Since artistic works also give one a chance to express their opinions, it also helps the audience to express themselves better. Therefore, artistic works inspire the audience and help them gain confidence in their beliefs and personal perspectives (Social Justice Solution, par5).In a similar way, these works of art inspire the young people to pursue a carrier in art. They are encouraged to engage in activities such as singing, dancing, painting and composing songs. By learning about the historical occurrences in Israel, Americans gain a better understanding of the past. Subsequently, this influences their perspective in different areas such as political opinions.
The analysis of Israeli artistic works exposes one to different aspects of their culture. As such, students are able to gain an understanding of other people's culture. This helps them to appreciate other cultures around the world (Social Justice Solutions, par 1). In the end they become human beings who are well rounded and have a diverse understanding of the world. Thus art helps them get better quality in education .In return, this translates into the ability to solve the problems a person faces in life in a prudent way.
The Israeli artists have used their work to communicate to all parts of their world on their suffering. This information has influenced the political culture among the U.S citizens. For illustration, in the recent election the international policy of the candidates was one of the major factors used by the voters to elect a presedent.as such the candidate who promised to look into the affairs of Israel and help it was elected president.
Summary:
Even though the Israelites and the U.s citizens interact in different ways, the artistic works of the Israelis have been influenced the American culture in a great way. Through these works the citizens of the US have been able to understand and empathize with the plight of the Jewish people throughout history. In addition, it has helped them gain a new perspective about the refugees from Israel whom they now welcome with an open heart.in the political realm, the government has been moved into taking a defensive position in support of Israel.

























Works cited
Command Cause Foundation, (The Art of Life: How Arts and Culture Affect Our Values(.Sept 2, 2013.Retrieved http://valuesandframes.org/the-art-of-life/
Dallas ,Homi N.(Effect of Culture on Architectural Expression(.Retrieved http://architexture.net/doc/az-cf-168644.
Guliverlooks,(The Work of Ori Gersht(January 9,2014.Retrieved http://guliverlooks.wordpress.com
Ken Spiro,(The Jewish Impact on civilization: America and Jewish Values(.Simpletoremember.com.jewishonline retrieved http://www.simpletoremember.com
Moriarty Ana, (Contemporary Israeli Artists You Need to Know(.Widewalls. Retrieved http://www.widewalls.ch.contemporary-israeli-artists.
Social Justice Solutions, (How Art and Culture Affects Our Life(.July 8, 2015. Retrieved http://www.socialjusticessolutions.org.
The Independent,(Ka-Tzetnik 135633(,Wednesday 25,July 2001.Idependent News, Obituaries. Retrieved http://www.independent.co,uk.