Building connections across Montreal’s Jewish arts community
The Montreal Jewish Arts Collaborative (MJAC) is a group of artists, creators, cultural conveners, and industry professionals coming together over a shared interest and excitement for where and how contemporary arts meet Jewish culture! Membership is simple: either come to an MJAC event, sign up for the newsletter, or be a MJAC partner org. alum (more on that below). That’s it!
Our community welcomes those of all backgrounds and at all levels in their practice, with a focus on emerging and new practitioners whose work touches on Jewish themes. Above all, MJAC is a way to put curious minds in touch, foster new collaborations, and bring Montreal’s creative minds the resources, events, and opportunities they need to explore and grow creatively!
MJAC at a glance
Artists Across Disciplines
Meet, connect, and collaborate with Montreal-based artists working in different (or similar!) disciplines (fine art, theatre, music, design – you name it, it’s probably here)
Year-Round Events
Through the MJAC Newsletter access workshops and seminars, plus be the first to know about upcoming opportunities and events
Project Grants and Mentorship
Flexible project funding for alumni of KlezKanada’s Azrieli Scholarship, Segal’s Jewish Arts Mentorship and MJM’s Microgrants for Creative and Cultural Exploration
Jewish Culture, for Everyone!
An artistic community for Jewish creators…and anyone else interested in creatively exploring Jewish themes, culture, heritage, and intercultural connections. All are welcome to MJAC!
Partner Programs
The Montreal Jewish Arts Collaborative is a collaboration between three of Canada’s leading Jewish arts organizations: the Museum of Jewish Montreal, KlezKanada, and the Segal Centre for Performing Arts. Each organization brings a wealth of expertise in a diverse set of arts practices, meaning we can offer mentorship, funding, skill-building, and networking across disciplines.
Sign up for the MJAC newsletter and be the first to hear about workshops, meetups, drop-in studio hours, and creative opportunities. Connect with a dynamic community of artists, creators, and cultural innovators exploring where contemporary art meets Jewish culture.
What you’ll get, straight to your inbox:
- Exclusive event invites; be the first to hear about performances, workshops, gatherings, and more!
- Opportunities to grow your creative practice (grants*, open calls, and artist support).
- A creative network – Connect and collaborate with fellow artists.
Be part of the network—sign up today!
Funded Projects
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Committed to herbalism and its ties to Jewish rituals, Celia Robinovitch facilitated an herbalist Learning Circle which invited guests to read and write about diasporic land-based traditions alongside guest writer Ami Weintraub. This workshop was an outgrowth from Celia’s initial project with MJM where she guided guests in creating herbal besamim pouches and oxymels.
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Written by Daniel Carkner and illustrated by Ava Berkson, the chapbook Elenkrig is an homage to the 20th century New York-based Ukrainian Klezmer musician and seamstress Eva Elenrkig. With grey scale and fluid line drawings, Elenkrig depicts Eva’s tumultuous experiences within the garment industry but also her balalaika musicianship and family dynamics, allowing readers insight into the complex life of a young Jewish woman of her time.
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An award-winning pianist and skillful writer and performer, Gili Loftus presented a concert program created in collaboration with US-based puppeteer and playwright Jake (Yankl) Krakovsky entitled “Don Giovanni and the Golem walk into a Museum…“. The program utilizes theatrical puppet performance in conversation with musical and poetic components to explore the mythology behind the “Golem” creature of Jewish mystical folklore and its possible influences on the creation and staging of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni (1787). The project is an outgrowth of Loftus’s 2021 Microgrant “Ida’s Salon” program.
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Aguas is a performance by a trio of musicians whose family histories, shaped by rivers, migration, and memory, span continents. Featuring Damián Birbrier (saxophone), Amichai Ben Shalev (bandoneon), and Vovô Saramanda (percussion), the group draws on inherited memories to create music that flows between personal history and collective resonance.
Program Sponsors
MJAC (Montreal Jewish Arts Collaborative) and its related programming are made possible with thanks to the financial support of the Azrieli Foundation, the Averbach Family Foundation, and CANVAS.
More Ways to Engage
Exhibitions
The Museum’s arts programming and exhibitions seek to share Montreal’s diverse Jewish heritage and highlight contemporary issues and questions through innovative approaches.
Events
Our events act as a way to strengthen our audiences’ connections to community and Jewish arts and culture through new experiences.
Microgrants
We are dedicated to supporting the next generation of Montreal’s artistic and cultural leaders through our Microgrant Program for Creative Exploration.