Diane Reich is an artist, educator, motivational speaker, and passionate proponent of the Jewish experience and heritage, engaging audiences with her enlightening and captivating art presentations. She aims to wield her color-drenched original paintings to convey positive truths and remarkable tales that foster enhanced pride and deeper gratitude for our homeland, history, and culture. Her interactive art presentations resonate deeply, touching the hearts and minds of her audience, leaving a lasting impact on all who participate..
10 Art Presentations & Interactive Programs - descriptions & photos
"Israel: Young, Tiny, Democratic, and Remarkable"
"Israel: Young, Tiny, Democratic, and Remarkable"
Five paintings illustrate Israel's unprecedented and incredible contributions to mankind.
Five paintings illustrate Israel's unprecedented and incredible contributions to mankind.
40 incredible pride-evoking
fun-facts about Israel
Israel Provides Humanitarian Aid
Around the World
Israel's Miraculous Medical Achievements Save Lives Israel's Agricultural Techniques Help Globally Israel's Technology & Inventions Improve Humanity
"Who's At the Wall?
Finally, Living Free of Anti-Semitism in Our Homeland"
"Who's At the Wall?
Finally, Living Free of Anti-Semitism in Our Homeland"
The immigrant journey is portrayed through the compelling and inspiring true stories of four now distinguished men who escaped from across different eras, at different ages, and have since become influential figures who have contributed significantly to Israeli society. Coming from various countries and heterogeneous backgrounds, they all fled from anti-Semitism, discrimination, and oppression. The artwork illustrates them praying at the Western Wall in their homeland. They greatly appreciate Israel which provides them and all citizens with equal rights, autonomy, and religious liberty, but most of all they are grateful for their freedom from both state-sanctioned and societal anti-Semitism.
From left to right are images of:
1) Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau, child holocaust survivor, born in POLAND in 1937 - former Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel
2) Nadav Guedj, IDF soldier, born in FRANCE in 1998 - represented Israel & became finalist in Eurovision Song Contest
3) Natan Sharansky, human rights activist, born in the UKRAINE in 1948 - Knesset member, author, & Chairman of Jewish Agency
4) Shlomo Molla, survivor, born in ETHIOPIA in 1965 - Deputy Speaker of Knesset & Director of Immigration & Absorption
"Emet - Truth"
The Truth About Israel?
Twelve meaningful images and scenes encircle the map, highlighting important truths about Israel. This pride-evoking painting, along with the accompanying art presentation, uses historically documented facts to pictorially refute common myths, lies, and propaganda.
"Longing for Peace 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6x..."
"Longing for Peace 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6x..."
This dove symbolizes Israel's desire for peace. The years depicted at the bottom illustrate actions taken by Israel that demonstrate this aspiration for harmony. These dates also mark instances when the Arabs/Palestinians rejected both peace and the chance to establish their own state.
The "Wheelchairs of Hope" initiative, lauded by the U.N., is represented in this whimsical, painted papercut collage, showcasing the generosity and kindness of Israelis. Israeli volunteer engineers, occupational therapists, designers, and plastic experts, in partnership with volunteers at ALYN Pediatric Rehabilitation Hospital in Jerusalem, have created an innovative, lightweight, supportive wheelchair for children. These vibrant, child-friendly wheelchairs are being produced and donated by Israel to help children from underprivileged families gain mobility, attend school, and foster independence. Demonstrating their commitment to kindness and generosity, Israel has donated over ten thousand wheelchairs to children in need across Central and South America, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.
Israel's Generosity & Kindness
"100 Hearts"
"100 Hearts"
"A hundred hearts are too few to hold all the love I feel for you".
מאה לבבות לא מספיקים מכדי להחזיק את האהבה שאני מרגישה כלפיך
The painting's theme and imagery draw inspiration from the passionate lyrical poetry found in King Solomon's "Song of Songs."
The phrase within the artwork is derived from a modern verse.
Additionally, the art presentation builds upon and broadens
Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks' notion of the Seasons of Love.
People of the Book:
Fire, Fury, Faith, and Facts ~
100 Years of Jewish History in a Painting
"The People of the Book" is a term commonly associated with Jewish individuals. The painting depicts the Jewish people's history over the last century, including contemporary events, and incorporates multiple languages.The titles on the darker-hued books in the left stack reflect the grim and horrific events of our history, along with the current grave challenges faced by the Jewish community and Israel. Conversely, the titles on the brightly colored books in the right stack celebrate the numerous splendid facets of Jewish and Israeli existence that are exceptionally inspiring and a source of pride. Atop the books is painted a golden menorah, a Judaic symbol of faith, history, and miracles. The menorah, with its flames fiercely burning, represents both the fire and fury of the historical and ongoing injustices faced by our people. Yet, it also stands for faith, facts, and illumination. The light that emanates from the truth, faith, and knowledge instills in us a profound pride in our Jewish identity, our extraordinary heritage, our significant contributions to the world, and our hopeful outlook for the future. This shared legacy unites us, like a single menorah aglow with eight precious lights.
Yom HaZikaron & Yom HaShoah
STATEHOOD: Yom HaShoah is a Memorial Day dedicated to commemorating the 6 million innocent Jewish people murdered by the Nazis during WW11 soley because of their faith. 2/3 of European Jewry were systematically murdered during the Holocaust, also called the Shoah.
Yom Hazikaron is an Israeli Memorial Day honoring the fallen soldiers of Israel's defensive wars and the victims of terrorism.
The inscription near the top the star of the painting conveys the message that while Yom Hazikaron honors the tragic heroic losses involved in having and defending Israel; Yom HaShoah is a solemn reminder of the catastrophic, devastating, and tragic losses of not having a homeland.
I aim to encapsulate the enduring significance of Israel to the Jewish people, as vital now as it was when first established as a Jewish homeland 3700 years ago, and how antisemitism played a role throughout our history.
The Balfour Declaration of 1917, initiated by the British government and agreed upon by Britain, France, and Italy, supported the establishment of a homeland for the Jewish people.
Following WWI, the San Remo Resolution of 1920, an international legal treaty, was signed between the warring parties. This resolution, which came after the Allied powers' victory in WWI, legally bound the Axis powers to agree that the region known as Palestine, the ancestral homeland of the Jewish people, would become a state for them. Concurrently, the resolution allocated regions of Mesopotamia and Syria to the Arab population.
On July 24, 1922, all 52 member countries of the League of Nations, an international legal entity and forerunner to the United Nations, unanimously voted in favor of a Jewish State, a decision also endorsed by a joint resolution of the US Congress on June 30, 1922.
The Arab Revolt against the British and Jewish residents in the Mandate of Palestine from 1936-1939 prompted Britain to issue the White Papers in 1939. These papers reneged on previous commitments and appeased Arab insurgents by drastically restricting Jewish immigration to Israel, a factor that likely contributed to the murder of over two-thirds of European Jewry in the Holocaust. Before and during WWII, many countries restricted or shut their borders to Jewish refugees. The existence of Israel or a safe haven for these refugees could have been spared from the Nazis.
My painting is a representation of the significance of Israel to the Jewish community, both historically and in the present day.
Today Israel stands as the sole Jewish-majority nation where Jewish individuals can live without the fear of antisemitism. Presently, there are about 126 Christian-majority countries and 50 Muslim-majority countries, yet there is just one Jewish-majority country: the small yet significant state of Israel.
8 Inspirational Women Whose Lives Impacted Humanity
The painting depicts eight remarkable Jewish women hailing from Ethiopia, Ukraine, Germany, Egypt, Iraq, the former Soviet Union, and two indigenous to the land of Israel for generations. Their astonishing real-life stories of resilience, pride, peril, adventure, challenges, survival, and a commitment to Jewish continuity compelled them to seek refuge in Israel, the sole nation that embraced them, granting freedom, equality, and a place to call home.
Anti-Semitism: Then & Now
Anti-Semitism is a prejudice against or hatred of Jews, evident in genocides such as the Holocaust 1933-1945 and the Hamas Massacre of October 7, 2023. The Holocaust, carried out by the Nazis, led to a systematic murder of six million Jews. In contrast, today's antisemitism includes the October 7, 2023, attacks by Hamas terrorists, who targeted Israeli civilians with extreme brutal violence.
The key difference between the anti-Jewish sentiment of the 1940s and the present antisemitism of 2024, lies in the existence of the Jewish State of Israel. Today, Israel possesses a strong, ethical military and legal system that defends its citizens against antisemitism and aggression. Israel serves as a sanctuary where Jewish individuals can live free from antisemitism, and where all citizens can enjoy freedom and equality under Israeli law.
Never Again is Happening Again
The orphaned child weeping on the left, Simcha Shmuelowicz, is in Bergen-Belsen, a German concentration and slave labor camp in 1944. His entire family - parents, siblings, grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins, and almost all the Jewish residents of his town were murdered. The Nazi regime systematically murdered six million Jews using gas chambers, mass shootings, intentional starvation, untreated illness and disease, poor unsanitary living conditions, and harsh treatment. This state-sponsored genocide is known as the Holocaust. Many Jews were imprisoned in concentration camps solely for their Jewish faith, dehumanized into slave labor, stripped of their identities and referred to by numbers tattooed on their arms rather than their names. Two-thirds of European Jewry were systematically murdered by the Nazis. The Nazis, along with their allies and collaborators, also committed mass atrocities, resulting in the deaths of millions of non-Jewish individuals as well. Following World War II, the rallying cry was "Never Again" as a vow to prevent such horrors from recurring.
The painting of 2024 portrays Kfir Bibas, a ten-month-old red-haired Israeli red-haired child, who was abducted by Arab terrorists along with his four-year-old brother Ariel, and his mother Shiri. His father Yarden was beaten, as evidenced by a photo, and taken hostage by a group of Hamas terrorists and is also being held captive in Gaza along with hundreds of others. Shiri's parents, who lived near them in the same Kibbutz Nir Oz, were murdered on October 7, 2023. According to Nitsana Darshan-Leitner, Esq, President of Shurat HaDin, on that day, three thousand terrorists from Gaza breached the border wall in three waves and invaded the country of Israel in the early morning. The first wave was a thousand Hamas terrorists, and the second two waves were two thousand Gazan militants who infiltrated 24 Israeli towns and kibbutzim and targeted the Nova music peace festival and all committed heinous atrocities, including murder; shooting; decapitation; tying-up and burning of people alive; arson; baking infants in ovens; cutting off limbs; luting and destroying people and property; brutal sexual violence; extreme torture; and horrific mutilation of thousands of innocent civilians in Israel. Men, women, elderly, and children were massacred and kidnapped solely because they were Jewish or resided in Israel. The attackers gleefully screamed "Allah Akbar" after each murder as can be seen on their own Go-cam video recordings as they laughed, cheered, and many called their parents to excitedly tell them how many Jews they each murdered. They recorded their own hateful acts of violence and posted their evil atrocities on social media. Released hostages later reported that when they were brought into Gaza by the Hamas terrorists and paraded through Gazan streets, thousands of citizens of Gaza gathered, cheered, and beat them with sticks and bats as they were dragged by their elated captors. The Gazan captors sold the hostages to Hamas who took them to underground hot, humid, airless tunnels, where they continued to torture them.
Today Israel is defending its citizens and fighting a war in Gaza against Hamas terrorists. The Israeli Defense Force is conducting operations to search for and rescue the hostages. Israel is determined to neutralize the terrorists' threat and to prevent further attacks, as the Gazan terrorist assailants have repeatedly promised to "continue violently attacking Israelis again and again and again". Unfortunately, there are hostages still being held and tortured in the tunnels of Gaza for over 300 days and we pray they will be safely released and united with their families soon.
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VIRTUAL PROGRAMS
"Let's Talk About Israel:
A Fun & Interactive Look at a Remarkable Country"
During the Covid-19 pandemic, creative, multi-media, interactive virtual zoom programs were created and presented. They include comics, short videos, paintings, photos, fun facts, and a unique and creative Israel IQ Game.
Diane Reich’s Paintings Chosen for Honors, Distinctions, & Exhibitions
Personal Renaissance Art Exhibit at Belskie Museum of Art & Science, Closter, NJ, 3/5 - 3/26/2017
Israel's Contributions to Humanity Showcase Art Display, Bialystoker Synagogue, NY, NY, 4 - 5/2017
Religious Freedom Showcase Art Display, Bialystoker Synagogue, NY, NY 6-7/20/2017
Freedom An Artistic Interpretation Exhibit, Belskie Museum of Art & Science, Closter, NJ, 3/5 - 3/25/2018
Manny Cantor Center of the Educational Alliance Art Exhibition, NYC, NY 10 -12/2018
Stanton 11 Exhibit at the Stanton Street Shul Art Gallery, NYC, NY 1/13-3/12/2019
Henry Goodleman Art Gallery Exhibition, Brooklyn, NY 1/15-1/20/2019
Manny Cantor Center of the Educational Alliance Art Exhibit, NYC, NY 4 - 6/2019
Painting Exhibition at Co-op Village NORC Center, NY, NY 9/2019
The Pen and the Knife Jewish Papercut Art Exhibition, NYC, NY, 11/4 - 12/2019
Utopia: Visions and Traditions Yiddish New York Art Show, NY, NY 12/12/2019 - 1/2020
Best of Stanton Art Exhibit, Stanton Street Synagogue Art Gallery, NY, NY, 3/8/2020 - 11/2021
"Finf Yor" Five Years of Art at online gallery of Yiddish NY www.YiddishNewYork.com/visual-Arts_Exhibition 12/2020-12/2021
Painting chosen to represent month of February in United Jewish Council 2021 Calendar nyc.ujces.org/calendar2021 2021
Paintings exhibited in UJC Virtual Art Gallery https://ujces.org/art-gallery 2021
"Veiling and Revealing: The Facemasks of the Torah Art Exposition" 1 of 24 international artists chosen to present at fundraiser sponsored by Harlem Moishe House and the Yeshivat Chovevei Torah Team for the environmental non-profit, Hazon. 2/27/2021
Interview & Article about Artist https://ujceastside.org/blog/artist-diane-reich 2-3/2021
https://www.facebook.com/HarMoHo.ny/photos/gm.124586899535009/532565172750995 2021
Moshe House and Yeshivat Chovevei Torah https://www.facebook.com/HarMoHo.ny/videos/842125156518552 2021
HAZON https://shmitaproject.org/submissions/plantning-for-the-future 2021
Art chosen to be printed on postcards and distributed to clients as Holiday Gifts from United Jewish Council 12/2021 - 1/2022
Virtual Manny Canter Center Art Gallery mccgallery.org https://www.mccgallery.org/celebratearts/diane-reich May, 2022
Administration for Community Living (ACL) "Age My Way" Celebrate Arts MCC's Jewish Communal Fund Gallery Opening Reception, May 13, 2022
Magical Thinking & Other Persistent Notions Exhibit, Dr. Bernard Heller Art Museum at Hebrew Union College, NY, NY - May 24 - Dec 29, 2022
Upcoming Solo Art Exhibit at Kehila Kedosha Janina Synagogue, only Greek Synagogue in Western Hemisphere, anticipated opening 12/2023
Art Show in Century Village, Boca Raton, Florida.2/2023
One Nation Indivisible with Liberty and Justice for All Art Exhibition, Hebrew Union, Bernard Heller Art Museum, 1/2023- 6/2023
Gala Art Exhibition at the Stanton Street Synagogue Art Gallery, NYC 12/2022 - 7/2023
CelebratEArts Exhibition at the Educational Alliance, in NYC, throughout the month of May. Moderated Q&A with the 15 artists and Reception 5/17/2023
One Nation Painting was selected to be part of a Travel Museum from September 2023 to July 2024
Century Village of Boca Raton Art Exhibition March, 2024
"Our Art Belongs Here" Ernest Rubenstein Gallery at the Senior Art Exhibition at Manny Canter Center, NYC , www.mccgallery.org May 2024
Art exhibition titled "HOSTAGES" will be showcased at Stanton Street Shul, NYC beginning in September, 2024.
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26 Testimonials
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An Exhibition of Art From Seniors at the Educational Alliance
Exhibition at Dr. Bernard Heller Museum, 1 West 4th St. NYC