Here are two paintings in acrylic and ink that I did about a decade ago. I was studying my own ancestry at the time, and had arrived at new territory: my ancient heritage. Previously, I had explored the immediate past generations of my grandparents and great grandparents, who took me back to Eastern Europe. Before that, I had tapped into my most primal roots as a human being, tracing my origins all the way back to Africa, and finding deep wellsprings there for my art. In between lay my unfamiliar "middle" heritage, a vast new territory to explore. It was centered in Israel, whence came my Jewish ancestors two thousand years ago, and who dwelt in that ancient land going back almost five millennia.