2025 Artist in Residence
Paper Midrash
Artist & Scholar-in-Residence Weekend
October 31-November 2, 2025
Featuring
Isaac and Rabbi Shawna Brynjegard-Bialik
Congregation Emanu-El B’ne Jeshurun is excited to welcome Paper Midrash for a weekend of scholarship and creative expression. There will be opportunities for individuals of all ages to learn from husband and wife “dynamic duo” Isaac and Rabbi Shawna Brynjegard-Bialik. From exploring the spooky Jewish world to in-depth text study, programs will explore the intersection of Jewish tradition and pop culture. Each program will be based on text and there are opportunities for all ages to create their own artwork. No artistic skills required! Click on the links below to register for the events.
This residency is made possible by the generosity of the Eugene and Ruth Freedman Family Foundation.
Friday, October 31, 6:00pm
Visual Sermon during Shabbat Service
During Shabbat worship, Isaac and Rabbi Shawna will deliver a visual sermon on “The (Not So) Spooky Jewish World or Witches and Demons.”
Friday, October 31, 7:30pm
Shabbat Dinner
Following our 6:00pm Shabbat service, join us for dinner with our artist and scholar in residence.
Click here to register for the dinner.
Saturday, November 1, 10:00am
Torah Study with Knives
Isaac and Rabbi Shawna will lead “Torah Study with Knives” following Study Minyan at 9:00am. This three-hour workshop will focus on Lech L’cha, the weekly portion and all participants will make artwork that they can take home. Registration is limited to 30 participants, so please register early. Lunch is included in registration. Click here to register.
Saturday, November 1, 7:00pm
Havdalah & Communal Art Project
Join with the CEEBJ community as we conclude Shabbat with Havdalah and create a fingerprint mosaic banner. Shmooze over delicious desserts and add your fingerprint to a new piece of artwork that will hang in our building. Click here to let us know you are coming.
Sunday, November 2, 9:00am
Fold and Cut Torah
Students in K4-6th Grade and their parents are invited to learn with Isaac and Rabbi Shawna through “Fold and Cut Torah.” The program includes visual instruction on Torah values and midrash with a focus on parashat hashavua (the weekly Torah portion) through the lens of comic books, superheroes, and pop culture. Participation in this program will count as Religious School for the morning. Click here to let us know you are coming.
Sunday, November 2, 11:00am
Make Your Own Golem
Students in 7th-12th Grade are invited to learn with Isaac and Rabbi Shawna as they Make their Own Golem. The workshop comprises a presentation/discussion on the history of the golem in Judaism and a hands-on workshop in which participants will make their own paper golems out of cut-up comic books, in the “Paper Midrash” style. Participants each make their own golem to take home. Click here to let us know you are coming.
About our Artist & Scholar-in-Residence:
Husband and wife “dynamic duo” Isaac and Rabbi Shawna Brynjegard-Bialik create new pathways into Torah, combining deep Jewish scholarship with comic books and pop culture for a unique take on traditional texts. They are the perfect fit for a community that wants to engage with Torah personally and deeply, with dynamic visual presentations and engaging hands-on workshops. They met at Jewish camp in high school, and have three children.
Isaac Brynjegard-Bialik cuts up comic books and reassembles them into papercuts that explore the stories of the Jewish people, connecting popular culture with sacred texts. He has shown his papercuts in galleries across the globe, and has commissions in museums, synagogues, hospitals, and private collections. Isaac regularly speaks and writes about the intersection of art and Judaism, and is on the Executive Board of Jewish Artists Initiative, committed to fostering visual art by Jewish artists and promoting dialogue about Jewish identity and related issues. His work is frequently featured in print and online, including recent articles in The Forward, The L.A. Weekly, Cleveland Jewish News, and KCET’s “Artbound” series.
Rabbi Shawna Brynjegard-Bialik adapts traditional Jewish concepts to a modern Reform context, and brings that synergy to students of all ages. She is an engaging teacher of Torah, bringing text to life with her unique, modern perspective. She received a Master of Hebrew Letters in 1998 from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati, and was ordained in 2002 as a member of HUC-JIR’s first Los Angeles class. Shawna has been adjunct faculty in the Rhea Hirsch School of Education and Rosh Tefillah at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion’s Los Angeles campus, and is adjunct rabbi at Congregation Or Ami in Calabasas, California. Before starting Paper Midrash she served as an Associate Rabbi at a Southern California congregation for 13 years. Shawna has been a member of the faculty of URJ Camp Newman since 2008 and was Porter Creek Site Director in the summer of 2019.