#projectrunway #parshattetzaveh #Tetzaveh #fashion #clothing #design #clothingdesign #kohengadol #highpriest #clothes
If the title of this post seems incongruous with a blog on the weekly parsha, please read on.
For the past few months I have become captivated with the television series Project Runway, a series you might already be familiar with. The series, which has been around for more than twenty years, was never of any interest to me, because clothing, accessories and makeup are not at the top of my priority list, but about two months ago I decided on a whim to watch an episode while exercising and I was immediately hooked. Before I began to watch the show, I never would have imagined any connection the series could have with Parshat Tetzaveh, but maybe there is!
What is so captivating, is that in each episode of Project Runway viewers are witness to the amazing power of creativity. When watching, I have the chance to have a front row seat to see artists at work and visions brought to life. In each season hopeful designers are given a prompt and then one half an hour to sketch out their idea and a short time to purchase fabrics and notions. These things become the basis of their design. They are given little time and although they are provided with some well placed guidance by a mentor (Christian Soriano), ultimately it is the designer's vision of what clothing can be that is ultimately realized. Sometimes the participants win and sometimes they lose, but it is never for a lack of vision and talent. Truly, all of the participants win when they see their creation being actualized on a model walking down the runway.
But there is even more that I have learned from Project Runway beside witnessing the creative process of design. I now know what the silhouette of a garment is, (the shape of a garment from behind a lit curtain), that structure and form are important, and that a garment has a certain movement when its host moves. Most of all, though, it has been inspiring to learn the stories that inspire the garments. The judges of the show are almost as interested in the story behind a garment as they are in the fabric, the construction and the appearance of a garment. Designers are instructed to design from a narrative that they invent so that the clothing design contains a story of sorts. These stories might originate with their family stories, their places of origin or their personal or national identities. Without a narrative, clothing is just something to wear and not a wearable work of art or a vehicle of cultural symbols. With a back story trousers become more than trousers, dresses become more that dresses and a garment begins to paint a portrait of its creator.
Perhaps it is no accident that I, a person who cares little about fashion, is immersed in a show about fashion during this week's parsha, Parshat Tetzaveh, which I would dub the Clothing Parsha, as it is here that the garb of the Kohen Gadol is described in great detail. From head to toe the Kohen’s clothing is purposeful and symbolizes the narrative of the fledgling nation of Israel. The clothing is appealing and beautiful, but perhaps like some of the designs on Project Runway, not too practical.
Most importantly though, like the creations on Project Runway, there is a back story and meaning in each article of clothing which conveys messages to the people of the nation.
What are these symbols that are portrayed? There are a great many and there is little in this clothing that doesn't suggest an idea or a representation of the tribes of Israel.
Take a close look at this detailed image of the various meanings of the different aspects of the Kohen Gadol's clothing.
It is said that the story of the building of The Mishkan in some ways mirrors the story of the Creation of the World. In the story of creation God endowed humans with the power to create and it is in the building of the Mishkan and now in the sewing of the garments of the Kohanim and the Kohen Gadol where human skill and creativity is on full display. When the Kohen Gadol went to do his holy work it was with dignity, with beauty, functionality, all the while wearing the representation of the Israelites over his heart and over his two shoulders. That is our backstory.
We wear our stories on our backs, over our hearts, on our feet and the way we cut our hair.
Our moods and our attitude toward life shine brightly through our clothing.
It is strange how something as modern as a show about today's fashion can intertwine like a vine with a subject as ancient as the dress of the Kohanim. Because of Project Runway I can pay attention to the clothing of the Kohanim in a new way; a way that enriches my understanding of beauty, history and most importantly, it brings my attention to the story that each of us display when we present ourselves to the world.
Isn't it wonderful that the Torah gives us something new to think about each week? : )
I think that I will go and watch another episode now that I am finished writing.
Wishing you a Shabbat Shalom,
Leann
Gown designed by Christian Siriano Image Taken from the Wiki Commons.
According to the Talmud, there is meaning in the clothing of the Kohanim.
"The robe [worn by the High Priest] atoned for bloodshed, the breeches atoned for lewdness, the turban made atonement for arrogance, the belt atoned for [impure] meditations of the heart, the breastplate atoned for neglect of civil laws, the apron atoned for idolatry, the cloak atoned for slander, and the crown, worn on the forehead, atoned for brazenness."
(Talmud, Zevachim 88b)
I couldn't resist. (For the Wednesday morning and Sunday morning foot tappers)
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