New Lives of Ancient Arts: An Evening with the International Catacomb Society
Thursday 24 May 2018 6:30-9:30 p.m.
Grogan & Company, Auctioneers
20 Charles Street, Boston, MA
Honoring the remarkable work and vision of International Catacomb Society founding directors, Estelle Shohet Brettman & Florence Zundell Wolsky
Program of Events
6:30 - Social hour with wine and Mediterranean buffet generously provided by David Basile of Janney Montgomery Scott Financial Planners and the Grogan Family of Grogan and Company, Auctioneers
7:30 - Opening remarks and guest speaker introduction by Prof. Annewies van den Hoek, Vice President, International Catacomb Society
7:35 - Multi-media artist Janet Shapero on “Recollections and Interconnections – from Catacombs to the Cosmos”
8:00 - Short intermission
8:10 - A Calling to Classical Arts: Remembering Florence Z. Wolsky with Alfred Wolsky, Esq., President, International Catacomb Society, and Dr. John J. Herrmann, Jr., Curator of Classical Art (emeritus), Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
8:30 - Karen Audette, filmmaker, introducing the showing of her documentary film, “The Nike Chariot Earring,” (2016)
9:00 - Concluding remarks by Jessica Dello Russo, Executive Director, International Catacomb Society
Special thanks to Mr. & Mrs. Ted D’Amato, Susan & Larry Weiner, and Benjamin and Beverly Weiner for generous contributions to the ICS Scholarship Program in Florence Wolsky’s honor.
ICS also is most grateful to event sponsors and providers, the Grogan family of Grogan & Company Auctioneers, David Basile of Janney Montgomery Scott Financial Planners, Alfred Wolsky and family, and Annewies van den Hoek for invaluable assistance with planning and program design.
About the International Catacomb Society:
The International Catacomb Society was founded in 1980 by Estelle Shohet Brettman (1925-1991). The society strives to increase knowledge about the interconnections between Judaism, Christianity, and the surrounding ancient world by issuing grants, sponsoring lectures, and disseminating information and publications. More about ICS's unique mission and global outreach can be found at: www.catacombsociety.org.
About Grogan & Company:
Grogan & Company is a family-run business located in Boston's historic Beacon Hill neighborhood and currently holds four major auctions annually, attracting buyers from around the world. In addition to scheduled auctions, Grogan provides a full line of estate services including complimentary in-home consultations, appraisals, and estate liquidation. Grogan's schedule and services are detailed at: http://groganco.com/.
Our Evening Honorees:
Estelle Shohet Brettman (1925-1991) was a scholar of iconography of ancient gems and seals, and docent and lecturer on these subjects at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Becoming a dealer in antique jewelry, she made frequent trips to Italy, where she was impressed by the wealth of information about the Roman catacombs and the people buried there. Disturbed by the fragility of the remains, and the losses effected by time and nature, she set about trying to draw attention to the catacombs and their valuable remnants of the past, founding the International Catacomb Society, developing the exhibition "Vaults of Memory", and researching and writing a study of the catacombs, especially the little-known Jewish catacombs, from an art historical and ecumenical point of view.
Florence Z. Wolsky (1923-2018) joined the Department of Classical Art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, in 1974, and was a member of the Department until 1991, when, at Estelle Brettman's request, she became a co-author with Amy Hirschfeld, of Vaults of Memory: The Roman Jewish Catacombs and their Context in the Ancient Mediterranean World. With Prof. Emily Vermeule of Harvard University, Ms. Wolsky was the co-author of Toumba tou Skourou, the publication of the Harvard University-Museum of Fine Arts, Boston archaeological excavation in northwest Cyprus. Ms. Wolsky was a founding board member of the International Catacomb Society, and, for over two decades, served on its executive board as Secretary.
Photogallery of images from Estelle and Florence's ICS
