Threads That Bind: Weaving as a Practice of Storytelling
Join Vilna Shul Community Creative Fellow Josh Kurtz to explore the art of weaving and create a textile project of your own. Across thousands of years and multiple cultural traditions, weaving has been, and continues to be, a powerful metaphor for both creation and destruction, beauty as well as brokenness. In this session, we will focus on the relationship between weaving, memory, and storytelling as we learn about the history of weaving and look at examples of diverse textiles, from medieval tapestries to Navajo rugs - and explore Jewish traditions of weaving in honor of Jewish American Heritage Month. Participants will have the opportunity to weave small textiles inspired by the stories from their lives and communities.
About the presenter: Joshua Kurtz: is a weaver, writer, and educator based in Somerville, Massachusetts. He recently completed a Masters of Divinity degree at Harvard Divinity School, where he studied Judaism, grief, and ethics. He has previously worked as a community organizer and educator in Washington, DC, and Brasov, Romania. His writing has been published in the Smithsonian Folklife Magazine, the Colorado Review, and Peripheries, amongst several others. You can learn more about his work, including his weaving studio – Wild Goose Weaving – at his website.
- Date:
- Tuesday, May 5, 2026
- Time:
- 6:30pm - 8:00pm
- Location:
- Druker Auditorium
- Audience:
- Adult
- Categories:
- Classes & Workshops
Registration has closed.
- Accessibility:
- Reasonable accommodations will be provided to persons with disabilities requiring assistance. If you need a reasonable accommodation, please contact the city of Newton’s ADA Coordinator at least two business days in advance of the meeting: adacoordinator@newtonma.gov or (617) 796-1440. For Telecommunications Relay Service, please dial 711 or call City Hall’s TTY/TDD line at 617-796-1089.