Artist Jason Loik paints details of a ceiling panel during the reconstruction of the Gwoździec synagogue, an 18th-century Polish wooden synagogue that had been destroyed by the Nazis during World War II.
Trillium Studios is pleased to announce that its award-winning documentary Raise the Roof is now available on Amazon in the United States and the United Kingdom. Raise the Roof comes to Amazon after a highly successful run on public television as part of the “Jewish Film Showcase.” To date it has been selected for screening at more than 150 festival and events and won 6 best documentary film awards.
Raise the Roof documents the ten-year journey of artists Rick and Laura Brown as they inspire more than 300 students and professionals to travel to Poland with the intention to rebuild Gwoździec, one of the 200 magnificent wooden synagogues destroyed by the end of World War II. The original Gwoździec synagogue was built in the 18th century, at a time when these wooden buildings were the center of Jewish life in Eastern Europe. Elaborate and sophisticated, unique to their time and place, they flourished for centuries, growing more complex during this period of Jewish prosperity. As the Browns and their team hew the log structure and recreate the painted ceiling, they discover a little known period of history when Jews and Poles worked side-by-side to create stunning, mysterious, and profoundly meaningful buildings. “Raise the Roof is about a remarkable dream and a journey of rediscovery,” said director Yari Wolinsky. “It highlights the optimism of a new generation and a growing dialogue between Jews and Poles about the past and the future, providing a unique and positive way to connect with history.”
The magnificent, hand-made replica of the Gwoździec roof and ceiling mural is now the centerpiece of the POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw.
The Gwoździec synagogue roof structure, ceiling paintings and bimah installed in the "The Jewish Town" gallery of the POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews.
Photo by Magda Starowieyska.
