The Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles has commissioned Oded Ezer to design a new version of the ancient Jewish Haggadah text.
The Skirball Center is inspired by the premise that Jewish visions and values can be appreciated by all people, regardless of origin or creed. It welcomes a public that is diverse in every regard — ancestry, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, economic status, spiritual practice — to connect with these values and with each other.
The Skirball Haggadah, edited by Robert Kirschner, seeks to connect the generations of Jews who have celebrated the story of the Exodus in centuries past and to make that story deeply relevant to the present. Yet its primary focus is on the social relevance of Passover: the human quest to overcome adversity, to build a just and compassionate community, and to bequeath it to future generations.
This book’s distinctive Hebrew font, OE Kadim (Hebrew for “east wind”), is based on a Yemenite manuscript written by calligrapher Saadia al-Adani in 1222 CE.
Front cover of the Skirball Haggadah by Oded Ezer
Cover of the Skirball Haggadah by Oded Ezer
Honor Memory, a double-spread from the Skirball Haggadah by Oded Ezer
Honor Memory, a double-spread from the Skirball Haggadah by Oded Ezer
Welcome the Stranger, a double-spread from the Skirball Haggadah by Oded Ezer
Welcome the Stranger, a double-spread from the Skirball Haggadah by Oded Ezer
Pursue Justice, a double-spread from the Skirball Haggadah by Oded Ezer
Pursue Justice, a double-spread from the Skirball Haggadah by Oded Ezer
Build Community, a double-spread from the Skirball Haggadah by Oded Ezer
Build Community, a double-spread from the Skirball Haggadah by Oded Ezer
Show Kindness, a double-spread from the Skirball Haggadah by Oded Ezer
Show Kindness, a double-spread from the Skirball Haggadah by Oded Ezer
Show Kindness, a double-spread from the Skirball Haggadah by Oded Ezer
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All rights reserved © Oded Ezer, 2020
Client: The Skirball Center, Los Angeles
Visual concept and art direction: Oded Ezer
Design: Oded Ezer, Golan Gafni