Description
mixed media on fabric, 29 ¼” x 10 ¼”
The Fifth Plague: Pestilence (Tif’eret/Compassion – Sly Compassion)
Compassion considers all the flaws of an individual and extends a helping heart — it is the ability of one’s soul to experience the pain and needs of his fellow man. Egyptian compassion was sly, shrewd, and deceitful. It exploited other’s weaknesses for selfish purposes and destructive goals. This type of compassion inflicts damage silently and deadly.
I likened Pestilence to a great plague — a rat born plague — rats having the sly, shrewd, and deceitful characteristics of the Egyptians and because they represent of Hashem’s lowliest creatures. In this piece I replicated sets of rat prints running hither and yon scurrying over the fabric, carrying with them filth and disease in their wake. The red thread symbolizes both the of the rings of a tree (the Jewish people) as well as Hashem’s timeless protection of them.
