In the 1930s, Bernard Baruch Zakheim (1896-1985) was one of the leading artists in the Bay Area and one of the foremost Jewish artists in the country. He was also one of the most controversial. Today, he is best known for his vivid murals at the Coit Tower and the UC Medical Center, which reflect the political and social fault lines of the Depression era. Likewise, his sculptures, oils, watercolors, set designs, and sketches, which span more than six decades, often depict oppression and injustice, resistance and rebirth. The Jewish symbols of his Chasidic youth in Warsaw, the narrative fresco techniques he studied under Diego Rivera in Mexico City, and the post impressionism he absorbed in Paris, all served his artistic plea for human dignity.

This is the opening reception for Zakheim: The Art of Prophetic Justice, an exhibition of twelve photographic panels and thirty original paintings, at the Jazz Heritage Center this fall.