ABOUT THIS EPISODE
What responsibility do arts organizations—and the arts in general—have in championing Jewish culture, fostering inclusivity, and building bridges across communal lines?
In this episode of Tête-à-tête, host Jonathan Slater is joined by curator and writer Evelyn Tauben, founder of the Toronto-based Jewish arts organization FENTSTER, for a conversation about challenges that Jews in the arts in Canada have faced in recent years, as well as the many opportunities that exist for productive engagement, solidarity, and reconciliation. They focus on Evelyn's latest project, SHVILIM ("paths," in Hebrew), a provincially funded initiative celebrating Jewish creativity in Ontario's arts landscape. Jonathan and Evelyn chat about how SHVILIM is charting a new approach to educating about antisemitism through a holistic lens, and why its team is advocating for non-punitive solutions in the arts and beyond.
This conversation was recorded live at the Association for Canadian Jewish Studies' 2026 Annual Conference on May 31, at York University's Israel and Golda Koschitzky Centre for Jewish Studies.
We thank the Canadian Race Relations Foundation for their generous support of this episode.
OUR GUEST
Evelyn Tauben is a curator, producer and writer based in Toronto and originally from Montreal. She is a leader in the field of contemporary Jewish art and culture with 20 years of experience in museums, galleries and arts organizations including the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Renwick Gallery, the National Museum of American History, the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Koffler Centre of the Arts. In her capacity at the Koffler, Tauben oversaw the Koffler Gallery where she curated the exhibition, Spin Off: Contemporary Art Circling the Mandala (2011). She also curated exhibitions featuring the photography of Andrew Moore (New York), Zion Ozeri (Israel) and D.R. Cowles (Montreal). In 2016, she launched the artist-run window gallery, FENTSTER, which featured site-specific installations connected to the Jewish experience, extending her deep interest in democratizing art and animating the urban landscape with contemporary art. Tauben has curated content for festivals including the Ashkenaz Festival (Toronto) and Le Mood (Montreal). She sits on the board of KlezKanada and previously served on the board of Kaeja d’Dance. Currently, she is the project director of SHVILIM.
RECOMMENDED READING
Explore SHVILIM's Bridging Worlds resources on understanding antisemitism in French and English
Summary of SHVILIM's work with the Ontario Arts Council
EPISODE ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Host: Jonathan Slater
Producer/Editor: Theadora Draper
Music: J.K. Bradley
Executive Producers: Joshua Tapper and David S. Koffman
Tête-à-tête: Conversations in Canadian Jewish Studies is made possible by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada’s Aid to Scholarly Journals program and the Israel and Golda Koschitzky Centre for Jewish Studies and J. Richard Shiff Chair for the Study of Canadian Jewry, both at York University.