I had the good fortune to live with these two shofars at one point in time, when house sitting while the woman with whom I was involved was away. She brought the shofars back from a trip to Israel, one for me and one that eventually made its way to the bimah of our synagogue at Rosh Hashanah.  During this time, the shofars lived together on a wooden sideboard in a room full of shifting light.  For days before picking up my camera, I watched the light move over the varying texture of the horns, sometimes catching the ridges of the unfinished surface, at others, slipping over the polished ends.

I owned a small shofar before this, made from the traditional ram’s horn, the sound high and piercing. It fulfilled its purpose well, but aesthetically did not catch my attention.

These horns were another matter.  I liked how their forms echoed each other, a reflection of my life as a Jewish lesbian.  The intertwining curves brought to mind the intertwining of lives and bodies in relationship, the edges defined by the space between, intimate yet distinct.  The table draped in white served as a contrast to the rich tones, allowing me to capture the arc of lines, the places where they meet and diverge.  After days of visual meditation, I photographed the shofarot, each a symbol of singular and communal awakening, arousing the eye to their interwoven splendor.

Editor's Note: Click on the icon in the lower right hand corner of the slideshow screen to enjoy these beautiful photos in full screen splendor.

Andrea's work is also available as photo prints, small or large. Contact the artist through her website, http://andreadguerra.com for information.