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Curator & Art Director

Celia Rabinovitch (PhD, MFA) is an artist, writer and scholar. Her paintings are exhibited in Canada, Europe and the USA. She has directed programs and taught at the University of California at Berkeley, the University of Manitoba, and Syracuse University. She was a John A. Sproul Fellow in Canadian Studies, Fine Arts and Anthropology, University of California at Berkeley. Author of Surrealism and the Sacred (2003), she most recently published Duchamp’s Pipe: A Chess Romance (2020), which was nominated for the 2021 Vine Award in Canadian Jewish Literature. 

Celia restored Nick Yudell’s photographs, kept by her father, seeking to understand his experience and vision. She investigated oral histories, translations of Russian letters, and RAF records to create The Lost Expressionist: Nick Yudell, a Photographer Discovered.

 

Provenance

Milton Rabinovitch (1909-2001), born in Morden, Manitoba to Sonia and David “Doc” Rabinovitch, was Nick’s cousin. Nick left his negatives and photography magazines with Milton, who preserved them for his lifetime. Milton volunteered for many years at the Morden Dominion Experimental Farm, taking part in plant research. From 1927 he ran Rabinovitch Bros. store in Morden–where Nick worked alongside him for a time—and later established Milton Footwear in Winnipeg (1960-89). Milton served as Chairman of the Board of the Morden Community Hospital, President of the Morden Board of Trade, and general manager of the Morden junior hockey team, and was a life member and past master of the Masonic Lodge.

 

Credits

Art Direction & Writing - Celia Rabinovitch
Web Design - Erika Kasper
Book Design: Ron Addad & Celia Rabinovitch
Development Fund: Alan Yusim

Unless otherwise noted: All photographs by Nick Yudell © Estate of Nick Yudell

Advisory Board

  • Stanislao Carbone, MA

    Director of Programs & Exhibits,
    Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada

  • Carla Dyck

    Director, Pembina Hills Arts Council

  • Leah Fontaine, MA,

    Artist and Indigenous Initiatives Educator
    University of Manitoba

  • Dr. Nelson Graburn

    Professor of Anthropology (Emeritus)
    University of California-Berkeley

  • Lenore Laverty, MSc.

    Community Development,
    Morden, Manitoba

  • Ronald Laverty, MA

    Community Development,
    Morden, Manitoba

  • Dr. Roland Sawatzky

    Curator of History,
    Manitoba Museum

  • Dr. Shelley Sweeney

    Archivist, Former Head, of the University
    of Manitoba Archives and Special Collections

  • Dr. Kathleen Wiens

    Museums, Culture, Heritage Lead Planner,
    Museum-Me, Prince Edward Island

With the generous support of the Manitoba Heritage Foundation, the University of California at Berkeley Canadian Studies Program, the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba, the Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada, the University of Manitoba, the Pembina Hills Arts Council, & Patrick Rae & Associates, Royal Bank