This publication is a tribute to the memory of the outstanding folklorist and ethnographer Dov Noy, who passed away in 2013. In the scholarly discourse that classifies folklore by modes and media of transmission, synagogue art—as distinct from folk narrative and behavioral lore—is commonly categorized as “visual folklore.” This paper examines the approach of classifying murals and sculptural decoration in east and central European synagogues from the late seventeenth century until the Holocaust as “folk creations.” It suggests a revision of pre-established definitions in the field, in general, and in the analysis of representative folk narratives relating to synagogues, in particular. The position of academic research into traditional Jewish visual culture, at the seam of art history and folkloristics, challenges predefined divisions of this integral cultural phenomenon into the conventional categories of separate disciplines. In the discourse classifying folklore according to the ways and media of its transmission, synagogue art—in distinction to folk narratives and behavioral lore—commonly falls into the category of “visual folklore,” defined as the visual domain of folk art and material culture. Jewish “folk art” is often attributed generally to “folk artists” and “craftsmen,” without a clear distinction between the two groups. This paper holistically examines the approaches to the murals and sculptural decoration in east and central European synagogues from the late seventeenth century until the Holocaust as visual folklore, craftsmanship, and artistic work, and outlines the part of oral lore in the programming and interpretation of synagogue art. Finally, it proposes to re-approach folk synagogue art as a medium that creates a visual environment for liturgical activity and predicates its viewers’ responses to the challenges, trials, and tribulations of daily life.

中文翻译：

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犹太教堂艺术的“民间”是什么？

本出版物是为了纪念 2013 年去世的杰出民俗学家和民族志学家 Dov Noy。在按传播方式和媒体对民俗进行分类的学术话语中，犹太教堂艺术——与民间叙事和行为传说不同——是通常被归类为“视觉民俗”。本文研究了将 17 世纪后期到大屠杀期间东欧和中欧犹太教堂的壁画和雕塑装饰归类为“民间创作”的方法。它建议修订该领域中预先确定的定义，尤其是与犹太教堂有关的代表性民间叙事的分析。传统犹太视觉文化学术研究的地位，在艺术史和民俗学的接缝处，挑战将这种整体文化现象的预定义划分成不同学科的传统类别。在根据传播方式和传播媒介对民俗进行分类的话语中，犹太教堂艺术——与民间叙事和行为传说不同——通常属于“视觉民俗”范畴，定义为民间艺术和物质文化的视觉领域。犹太人的“民间艺术”通常被普遍归于“民间艺术家”和“工匠”，这两个群体之间没有明确的区别。本文全面审视了从 17 世纪后期到大屠杀期间东欧和中欧犹太教堂的壁画和雕塑装饰作为视觉民俗、工艺和艺术作品的方法，并概述了口述传说在犹太教堂艺术的编程和解释中的部分。最后，它建议重新将民间犹太教堂艺术视为一种媒介，为礼仪活动创造视觉环境，并预测观众对日常生活的挑战、考验和磨难的反应。