Yael Canvas

Description

By Yael Harris

Yael was a heroine who saved Am Yisrael by killing Sisera, commander of the Canaanite army by hammering a tent peg through his head after luring him into her tent and making him drowsy with milk. Milk, being the ultimate life-sustaining material, also represents spirituality and the passing down of wisdom. In this case, milk was used to save the future of the Jewish People. 

Yael, also the name of the native nimble-footed mountain goat, the ibex, literally means “he shall ascend.” Yael used her quick dexterity to ascend in her mission.

Yael is mentioned as the wife of a Kenite and the Midrash connects her to Yitro, who converted to Judaism from the Keni tribe. Yitro is known for fighting the Canaanites in support of Am Israel and Yael comes full circle, completing the task. 

In the painting, I’ve included fantastical horns in the background as tribute to the ibex, connecting the power of the animal with Yael the warrior. I’ve also illustrated her as a woman of color due to her connection with Yitro, whose daughter Tzipporah is described as Cushite and “the most beautiful”. Yael is also wearing green, alluding to the uniform color of an Israeli soldier.

About The Artist

American-Israeli Yael Harris Resnick is a self-taught multimedia artist known for her hand painted silk, acrylic paintings and, most strikingly, integrating silk accents on her canvases. Influenced by her mother, calligrapher and ketubah artist Hedy Harris, much of Yael’s work involves Judaic and Biblical motifs and illustrates the splendor of the land of Israel using a vibrantly colorful palette. Inspired by great historical female artists like Freda Khalo, Yael strives to bring brave female heroines into the limelight.
www.yaelharrisresnick.com