Sunday, September 19, 2010

sukkah city

there was a competition of 600 designers from 43 countries to design the best sukkah. a panel of judges decided on 12 sukkahs which were the finalists. these 12 sukkahs were on display today in union square in new york city. the public was invited  to view these sukkahs in union square and vote for the one sukkah that will be displayed in union square on sukkot this year.  people will bid on these sukkahs and the proceeds will go to the homeless in new york city.  this project is meant to be recreated globally so people can appreciate the beauty of a sukkah and what the holiday means. the center of architecture on la guardia place in nyc will house the other submissions to this contest beginning on the 22, which is erev sukkot. so most of us who will actually be celebrating the holiday wont be able to see it until after yom tov.
the display of sukkahs was as fascinating as the diversity of the crowd who came to see them. there were jews of all denominations as well as non-jews. this too was a purpose of this project. to bring people together.
many of the sukkahs weren't anywhere near being kosher, but i loved them all. who would have imagined a sukkah would turn into a symbol to combat homelessness and world hunger? very cool.
update : the second sukkah photo is from the winning sukkah. it is called   fractured bubble . this one will be on display in union square during sukkot.

1 comment:

Devorah said...

So interesting and ironice that their sukkah competition is used to donate to the homeless! Especially since the sukkah represents our total dependance on Hashem and that we acknowledge that only He is the one who houses all of us and that our homes in this world are only temporary and we should focus on our permanent dwelling, on building a beautiful home for ourselves in the next world!