Home > Gary Rosenthal Press Release

Gary Rosenthal Press Release

Gary Rosenthal creates autism awareness and discusses his new 'Woven Collection' in an exclusive interview with Risa Borsykowsky, owner of Jewish Gift Place.

New York (PRWEB) November 2, 2009 -- Gary Rosenthal, artist, businessman, and philanthropist, recently introduced the newest items in The Gary Rosenthal Collection - The Woven Collection. Not only is Gary Rosenthal an inspired artist, but he is a person who cares deeply about others and making a difference in the world.

Although Gary Rosenthal is best known for creating one of the most popular lines of Judaica in the country, many are not aware that he is the CEO of Art as a Catalyst, which empowers special needs groups through training and employment. In fact, Gary's beautiful new line, the Woven Collection, is woven in his studio with the help of two autistic workers. One of them, Tim, enjoys the task of weaving copper strips into a mesh that other artists can fabricate into the studio's fine artwork, including mezuzahs, menorahs, and kiddush cups. Tim loves the precise operation of weaving, a skill at which he excels.

In a recent interview with Risa Borsykowsky, owner of Jewish Gift Place, Gary Rosenthal discussed his Woven Collection and spoke about John and Tim, the autistic employees who weave the items. "All of my staff/associates do what they do better than I would do. Nowhere is this clearer than with my autistic associates. Everyone is different, but John and Tim love to work on repetitive tasks where precision is critical. Weaving is a favorite task, and the more the better. They are very proud of the finished product."

Although Tim has worked with Gary Rosenthal for 6 years and John for 8 years, it has always been Gary Rosenthal's goal to work with special needs employees. Gary's first effort to combine art with employment was in 1977 when he tried to develop papermaking into a gift card operation with special needs staff. It did not work out at the time, but, says Gary, "My hope was always to bring people into the business using art as a catalyst for empowerment."

Gary Rosenthal got the idea for his Woven Collection while on vacation with his wife in Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. He saw a pair of mesh earrings that he bought for her. He liked the mesh/woven appearance and when he got home, he had the goal of using woven copper in his work. In January 2009, he introduced the first items in the Woven Collection - a set of mezuzahs. "After the mezuzahs were so successful, I was determined to create more woven items so that eventually I could hire another autistic staffer for just that collection. That is still my hope," says Gary Rosenthal.

Gary Rosenthal works with an organization called CSAAC of Maryland, which places special needs employees throughout Montgomery County, MD. When asked if he has learned anything new about autism since working on the new line, Gary responds, "I learn something new about all of my staff just about every week. Keep learning!"

The Gary Rosenthal Collection was founded almost 30 years ago and is based in Maryland with 15 employees. His works have been sold all over the world and have been presented to Presidents Carter, Reagan, Bush, and Clinton, and to celebrities including Bette Midler, John Travolta, Tony Randall, Ben Stein, and Henry Winkler.

Gary Rosenthal always has a new project going on, from projects that are his own initiative, to custom projects, such as the New Orleans Streetcar Tzedakah Project. These special tzedakah boxes were created in the likeness of New Orleans' famous streetcars and were commissioned by a member of the New Orleans Jewish community to thank those many friends of New Orleans who have contributed their time, energy, and financial resources to rebuild the community after Hurricane Katrina. 10% from the sale of each of these tzedakah boxes will be donated to the New Orleans Jewish Federation. Each tzedakah box is signed and numbered by Gary.

A deeply meaningful project on the drawing board is The Kristolnacht project in remembrance of 'The Night of Broken Glass.' Gary Rosenthal says, "The Kristolnacht project is in the planning stage. I am writing a proposal right now. This will probably be the largest and most significant project of my career. Stay tuned."

The Gary Rosenthal Collection hopes to create a memorial wall in honor of the millions who lost their lives during the Holocaust. People all over the country, and perhaps the world, will design one foot square glass tiles, some with a white border and some with black. These will then be fused solid and put together into one wall, symbolically putting back together the shards of that broken time. The black represents the evil of the past and the white represents the good hope of the future. The final wall will be displayed for all to see. If you are interested in getting involved with this historic project in any way, please contact us, or call Gary at 301.493.5577.

To learn more about Gary Rosenthal, read the entire Gary Rosenthal interview. Jewish Gift Place is proud to carry the entire Gary Rosenthal Collection.