The 70-year-old ophthalmologist, who also teaches at UTMB Galveston, was interested in photography, glassblowing and weaving before a trip to Florida two years ago.
“I was visiting some friends, and we went to the Ringling Brothers Museum in Sarasota, Fla.,” Zuckerbrod said. “They have a really extensive collection of Asian art. I thought, ‘Wow, that’s beautiful. I wonder how they made that.’
“When I came back to Houston, I looked at where they made pottery, and I was hooked. I work out of Third Coast Clay, which has an incredible community of people who make art.”
Last October, Zuckerbrod made ceramic bowls for each of the approximately 90 guests at his 70th birthday party.
Also, an event to support the Houston Bank will benefit from his ceramic talents on May 16. Zuckerbrod plans to donate between 12 and 24 bowls for the Empty Bowls fundraiser, to be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Silver Street Studios at Sawyer Yards, 2000 Edwards St. The bowls will be sold for $25 apiece, with 100% of the proceeds going to the Houston Food Bank.
Empty Bowls events have raised $1.2 million since its inception 20 years ago. Funds provide for more than 3.6 million meals.
Following the fundraiser, there will be an Empty Bowls Exhibition and Sale at Archway Gallery, 2305 Dunlavy St., through May 30.
Zuckerbrod, who grew up on Long Island and moved to Houston in 1978, first became interested in the visual arts after he graduated from Baylor College of Medicine in the 1980s.
He volunteered to do medical work in Nigeria and went on a safari in eastern Africa, where he developed a strong interested in photography – something he still pursues.
He later was attracted to glassblowing and weaving.
Zuckerbrod said two factors over the years strengthened his Jewish identity – moving to Houston in his 20s and becoming a father in his 40s.
“In New York, there are so many Jewish people around, in a way you didn’t even think about being Jewish,” Zuckerbrod said. “It just seemed like the norm. I came down here to medical school, and all of a sudden, I’m in the very small minority. I think the Jewish community in Houston is very warm and welcoming.”
Zuckerbrod met with Rabbi Roy Walter, z”l, about joining Congregation Emanu El when he knew he’d be having twins through a surrogate.
“At the time, I didn’t belong to a synagogue, so I made an appointment to talk with Rabbi Roy Walter at Emanu El,” he said. “I went in there and said, ‘I’m thinking about joining,’ and he said, ‘Wonderful.’ I said, ‘The reason I’m thinking about joining is because I’m about to have kids and I want them to grow up in the temple.’ He said, ‘Fabulous.’ I said, ‘I’m gay,’ and he said, ‘So what?’”
Zuckerbrod is still an Emanu El member. His twins are now 25. Ali, his partner of 10 years, is in the process of converting to Judaism.
Later this year, Zuckerbrod will help support the Houston Food Bank again, as a volunteer at Emanu El’s annual Mitzvah Day.
“The Houston Food Bank does fantastic stuff,” Zuckerbrod said. “The cost of living going up, people are living in a time of food anxiety, and it’s an even more important organization than ever.”
