With a Strong Hand

“With A Strong Hand” is papercutting artwork by Dan Harris. The title is a clever reference to the line from the Torah describing God’s power on behalf of Israel: “with a strong hand and an outstretched arm”.

A statement from the artist:

I think one of the most amazing things about being Jewish is how we trust our ancient traditions to carry us with strength into the future.  It goes against what feels to me like the logic of the modern world: that the past is old and antiquated, and should be left behind. 

Since October 7th, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about Tefillin, one of our oldest traditions, and how it has carried both myself and many friends through the war.  I always think of one friend, a hero of mine who wraps Tefillin every day when he climbs atop his tank in the north.  I am so inspired by him.  I am so inspired by the surge in demand for new sets of Tefillin that has occurred since October 7th, and how many people have felt the call of practicing Jewish traditions as a bulwark against this terrible war.  

The idea for this piece first began to form a few months after October 7th, as inspiring images of IDF soldiers wrapping Tefillin in combat began to crop up on social media, and after my own experience wrapping Tefillin with friends at Kerem Shalom Kibbutz when we repaired a mural there that Hamas had destroyed.  Iran’s massive missile attack on Israel in April also shaped the type of munition the hand is crushing, along with the text, model number, and the use of the regime’s flag inscribed on the weapon.  There are more messages in here if you look closely, but I’ll leave that up to the knowledgeable readers of Green Golem to decipher.  The visual style, blocky lettering, and bold colors were drawn from inspirations like Franz Kraus, Otte Wallish, and other Israeli poster designers from the early 1900’s to 1960’s.