Contemporary Biblical
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Genesis / From Something to Nothing, 26 x 18 x 6 inches, acrylic on sculpted canvas, 2023
At the Vienna Jewish Museum, April 2-October 5, 2025
From Something To Nothing explores the Kabbalistic concept of yesh me-ayin—creation from something (yesh) to Divine nothingness (ayin).
Ayin is understood as the ultimate reality underlying all things; nothing possesses a separate, independent existence. In the painting, the rough, earthy surface—symbolizing the material world—splits open to reveal another image beneath. At the center of this hidden layer is the divine nothingness, represented by the eye of God. Since we are all created in God’s image, this eye also serves as a self-portrait.
To evoke a sense of majesty within Creation, I rendered the surface in metallic tones. The cracks, resembling tectonic plates, suggest that rupture and brokenness are not just inevitable—they are essential for the emergence of something new.
This work poses the question: what does it mean to begin? It is not merely about God creating the world, but about the human struggle with origin, loss, and presence.
Bechukotai Blessings, 18" x 23" x 5", Acrylic & Venetian Plaster on Sculpted Canvas, 2022
Bechukotai Curses, 18" x 23" x 3", Acrylic & Venetian Plaster on Sculpted Canvas, 2022
Bechukotai
The concepts of blessings, curses, and rain, as mentioned in the Bible and the Torah, are open to interpretation—what may be beneficial for one can be harmful to another. These paintings explore the process of becoming more receptive to external forces, symbolized by rain. As we open ourselves to this flow of energy, we become more attuned to positive interpretations of the events around us, transforming challenges into opportunities for growth and understanding.
Ezekiel's Vision
Gryphon's Warning
Plastic Eating Enzyme
Care for all Species
The World Rests on Three Pillars
Fish in Plastic
Dragon Tree
NOAH, A Future Hope
Artworks responding to the escalating environmental and spiritual challenges that we currently face around the globe. Based on the ancient epic story of Noah, which is shared by Muslims, Christians and Jews.
Traveling exhibition 2025-2026, USA, Europe, Egypt.
Tabernacle Samaritan
Tabernacle Jewish
Installed at Museum of the Bible
Tabernacles
36 x 30 x 4 inches, acrylic on venetian blinds, 2022
"Focusing on the parallel paths taken by Samaritans and Jews, in “Tabernacles” Yona Verwer sets imagery drawn from Samaritan Tabernacle drawings in conversation with medieval Jewish depictions of the Tabernacle. She printed her two tabernacles on a vertical blind, so that each could be seen to varying degrees simultaneously— or separately." - Steven Fine, Curator, Samaritans, a Biblical People.
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