In the Sukkot Market

In this special installment of the Jewish Book Council/MyJewishLearning Authors Blog series, we spotlight book illustrator and visual artist Eliyahu Alpern.

Eliyahu Alpern is an amazing photographer. With author Allison Ofanansky, he’s done two children’s books that put distinctly different spins on Jewish holidays: In Harvest of Light, they walk through the process of making olive oil from tree to bottle. And, in Sukkot Treasure Hunt, a family tracks down all four species growing in the hills of rural Israel to use for their lulav and etrog.

We asked Eliyahu to take his camera on a stroll through Safed, Israel, where he lives. What he found was a menagerie that would put the sukkah scenes in Ushpizin to shame — and, if you’ve seen Ushpizin, that’s saying a lot.

Here he walks us through the sukkah market in Safed, showing us the detail and agony with which some people pick out their own lulavim and etrogim, and the other tools for celebrating Sukkot, too — from bamboo mats to sukkah decorations.


sukkot celebration by eliyahu alpern

sukkot celebration by eliyahu alpern
sukkot celebration by eliyahu alpern
sukkot celebration by eliyahu alpern
sukkot celebration by eliyahu alpern
sukkot celebration by eliyahu alpern
sukkot celebration by eliyahu alpern
sukkot celebration by eliyahu alpern

Eliyahu Alpern is the photographer of Sukkot Treasure Hunt and Harvest of Light. See his original art, and his blog, at GolemProductions.com.

Discover More

Sukkot 101

Beginning five days after Yom Kippur, Sukkot is named after the booths or huts (sukkot in Hebrew) in which Jews are supposed to dwell during this week-long celebration.

Sukkot at Home

How to celebrate the Festival of Booths.

Sukkot 2012

Everything you need to know to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles.