Jewish Arts & Bookfest
In celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month, the Magnes will host its first Jewish Arts & Bookfest.
In the Magnes tradition of incubating Jewish cultural events such as the SF Jewish Film Festival and the Jewish Music Festival, the Arts & Bookfest will bring together authors and artists for panel discussions, workshops, readings, teen programs, and performances that showcase the Jewish experience through art, culture, and storytelling.
In person at the Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life, 2121 Allston Way, Berkeley, CA
Adults: $20
Youth (under 18): $5
Students: $5
Museums for All: $5
Interested in volunteering at the festival?
Contact dalter@berkeley.edu for more information.
Keynote
Bestselling Author Screenwriter, Playwright, and Musician. (A.K.A. Lemony Snicket)
Join Daniel Handler, the creative force behind the Lemony Snicket series, for a conversation with Chanan Tigay about his latest book, And Then? And Then? What Else? In his memoir, Handler combines elements of autobiography, literary analysis, and storytelling to reflect on his journey growing up in San Francisco to navigating the ups and downs of a literary career, all while guided by the literature, music, and culture he loves.
Photo by Meredith Heuer.
Featured Presentations
Oracles and Golems: Jewish Futurism & Fantasy
with Adam Mansbach, Helene Wecker, and Michael David Lukas
Food and Wine: A Jewish Journey
with Jeff Morgan
Holding the Widest Tent: Jewish Culture in the Current Moment
with Ayin Press’s Penina Eilberg-Schwartz, Jewish Film Institute’s Lexi Laban, Reboot’s David Katznelson, LABA’s Elissa Strauss, and the Magnes’s Hannah Weisman
We Are Not Strangers
with Josh Tuininga and guest speaker Flora Ninomiya
For ages 12 and up
Steven Rood and Marcia Falk, a poetry reading
Presented by Bay Area Book Festival
Malkah's Notebook
with Mira Amiras in conversation with Rabbi Peretz Wolf-Prusan
Author Talks, Workshops, and Performances
Reimagining the Jewish Mother
with Elissa Strauss and Deena Aranoff
Jewish Women Writers of Argentina
Presented by Yiddish Theatre Ensemble
From Life to Novel: My Journey into The Anatomy of Exile
with Zeeva Bukai
Epistolary Memoirs
with Rachel Biale
The Broken Tablets: Wholeness & Brokenness with Intuitive Collage
Zine workshop presented by artist Danielle Friedman
For all ages
Between War and Peace
with Margarita Meklina, Tatyana Sundeyeva, Olga Zilberbourg, and Sasha Vasilyuk
Legacies: Generations of Holocaust Writing
with Susanne (Sanne) Kalter DeWitt, Grace Feuerverger, and Simi Monheit
Community Art Project: Mosaic Hamsa
with artist and arts educator, Nancy Katz
For all ages
Musician Chance Reiniesch
Musical performance
Schedule
With multiple sessions across four rooms and the exhibitors lobby, plan your day and be sure to catch your favorite speakers, performances, and workshops.
Activities
For all ages
Time Capsules Treasure Hunt
Explore the Magnes’s diverse collection of Jewish art and life as seen in the exhibition, Time Capsules with an activity booklet perfect for families and visitors of all ages.
Stop by the Magnes registration table at the museum entrance to get your copy of the treasure hunt.
Torah Arks at the Magnes
Centered on three special Torah Arks in the Magnes Collection, the 3-part video series, Families in Motion, tells the story of community and migration across the Global Jewish Diaspora.
Watch the short videos using the QR codes on the Torah Ark display cases in the Time Capsules: Exploring the Permanent Collection exhibition.
In celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month and created for all ages.
Exhibitors
Afikomen will have a pop-up shop, wiht a selection of books featured in the Jewish Arts and Bookfest.
Ayin Press is an independent publishing platform and interdisciplinary creative studio rooted in Jewish culture and emanating outward.
The 11th Annual Bay Area Book Festival: Changing the Narrative in Downtown Berkeley May 31-June 1, 2025.
Ben Yehuda Press is a Jewish publisher who find the right books to reach more Jews where they are.
The Jewish Community Library provides the Bay Area with free access to a large collection of materials illuminating the Jewish experience.
Yale University Press biography series Jewish Lives will host a book signing with local authors Daniel Matt and Robert Alter.
J. The Jewish News of Northern California is a nonprofit publication with a website and biweekly print edition covering the full range of what it means to be Jewish today.
New Lehrhaus is the Bay Area’s non-denominational lifelong Jewish learning institution dedicated to academic excellence, open inquiry, and cultural and religious pluralism.
For information about becoming an exhibitor, please reach out to magnesprograms@berkeley.edu.
Jewish American Heritage Month
This May marks the 19th annual celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month, an opportunity for all Americans to connect with the vibrant and varied American Jewish experience.
Partners
Supporting Donor
Fran Quittel in loving memory of her sister, Helen Katz-Lazer, and “Sista” Judy Becker, her beloved cousin.
Sponsors
Media Sponsors
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