Hello, my name is Michelle Yun. I’m the senior curator of Asian contemporary art at Asia Society Museum, associate director of the Asia Society Triennial, and cocurator of We Do Not Dream Alone.

Ghiora Aharoni mines his personal history to consider the implication gender and religious patriarchies have had on broader sociopolitical narratives. This trio of works incorporates a variation on the daily prayer orthodox Jewish men recite: “Blessed are you, Lord our God, Ruler of the Universe, who has not made me a woman.” Aharoni omits the word “not” and uses the resulting phrase, “Thank God for Making Me a Woman,” in the titles and as embroidered details of these works. This subverts the patriarchal dominance associated with the phrase. Male artisans embroider the phrase onto these male undergarments resembling dresses, a task traditionally undertaken by women, further questioning the validity of traditionally ascribed gender roles.

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