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For more than a millennium, Jewish worship spaces emphatically separated the sexes, and with a few exceptions, discouraged regular female participation. That is still the case in most synagogues of the world and in Orthodox synagogues in the United States. (Additional information on this presentation can be found here.)
In this illustrated talk, art and architectural historian Dr. Samuel Gruber will present a fascinating overview of the role of women in Jewish worship space, focusing specifically on the types of physical spaces allowed to women in European and American synagogue architecture from the 18th century until today. Dr. Gruber will present historical material much of which comes from his own continuing investigation of synagogue buildings and other Jewish places throughout the world.
