Detail from the Deller Sukkah Replica (2017) created by the Sala-Manca Group
FENTSTER is pleased to present a wide array of events for all ages in conjunction with the KICK OFF WEEK of our new exhibition, Like a Bird’s Nest.
Scroll down for details for events in-person and online!
Like a bird’s nest opening event
Wednesday, September 23 | 7 - 9 PM
FENTSTER Pop-Up @ PIX FILM Gallery | 1411 Dufferin Street
Tour the exhibition and meet the artists behind the Sala-Manca Group as well as our newly commissioned outdoor sukkah and window installation.
Light refreshments will be served.
With thanks to our generous neighbours at Macedo Winery.
Wandering Sukkot
With Prof. Galit Hasan-Rokem & the Sala-Manca Group
Thursday, September 24 | Doors Open: 6:30 PM | Talk: 7 - 8:30 PM
Wallace-Emerson Community Centre | 1260 Dufferin St | FREE
Join us for an evening with distinguished scholar Professor Galit Hasan-Rokem (Professor Emerita, Hebrew University) together with the artists behind the Sala-Manca Group: Lea Mauas and Diego Rotman. Professor Hasan-Rokem will speak on the topic: The Sukkah and Wandering Jews. The artists will speak of their two decades of creative exploration and research into the symbolism and function of the sukkah—a temporary hut traditionally erected during the Jewish festival of Sukkot – featured in the new FENTSTER exhibition, Like a Bird’s Nest.
Professor Galit Hasan-Rokem was the Max and Margarethe Grunwald Chair of Folklore and Professor of Hebrew Literature, and she also served as Head of the Mandel Institute of Jewish Studies. She has held the position of President of the International Society of Folk Narrative Research and is the Cultural Editor of the Palestine Israel Journal.
Learn more about the Sala-Manca Group here
Meet us earlier at the exhibition for a tour with the artists at 5:45 PM and walk over together to Wallace-Emerson for the talks followed by light refreshments.
Sukkah Fest
Come Early, Stay Late!
In honour of the Jewish Festival of Sukkot and the launch of the FENTSTER exhibition Like a Bird’s Nest, we’re extending our hours — you’re invited to bring your lunch and / or dinner to enjoy a meal in our outdoor sukkah and to visit the exhibition. Come once or come every day! Each evening during the week, FENTSTER is hosting a gathering in conjunction with the exhibition.
Special Sukkot Hours: September 26 - October 4 /// Open Daily Noon to 7 pm
SINGING IN THE SUKKAH with ha’sadeh
Monday, September 28 | 7 - 8:30 PM
Join Reb Aaron and friends from the Ha'Sadeh Jewish Renewal community for singing, chanting and sharing teachings related to Sukkot, finding hope and living with impermanence. Everyone is welcome!
Come early for a guided tour of the exhibition with the Sala-Manca Group, gather for singing at 7:30 pm.
Presented by FENTSTER & Ha’Sadeh
Ha'Sadeh is a Jewish Renewal community for those seeking spiritual, playful, and expansive connection. Translating to “The Field”, Ha’Sadeh is a gathering space for growth and nourishment, blooming in (bio)diversity and tended by the collective. Grounded in the living tradition of Jewish Renewal, we reclaim and reimagine Jewish practice through songful prayer and chanting, embodied expression, and emergent ritual. Our diasporically rooted and nature-centred gatherings offer energetic resourcing and nourishment for all who join us that extends and grows through our communities.
Sukkot Celebration for Families with Author Sidura Ludwig
Tuesday, September 29
5 - 7 PM | $15 for adults, $8 for children
Families are invited to share a meal in one of three sukkot in the new FENTSTER exhibition, Like a Bird’s Nest from the artist collective the Sala-Manca Group together with local artists. Following dinner, we’ll come together in our outdoor sukkah (weather permitting) with award-winning writer Sidura Ludwig reading from her latest picture book, Our Spectacular Sukkah (Candlewick Press, 2026) that explores community and connection in preparation for the holiday.
And, the wonderful folks from Shoresh will be leading hands-on activities for kids celebrating the joys of the Jewish fall harvest festival.
Our Spectacular Sukkah is geared at children ages 3 to 7. All are welcome to register and join in the fun!
Presented by FENTSTER and Shoresh: Jewish Environmental Programs
Sukkot Potluck for Jewish Artists & Arts Workers
Wednesday, September 30 | 6 PM onwards
Following up on our wonderful summer picnic in the park, join fellow Jewish folks who work in the arts for an evening of community and connection. Bring a vegetarian dish to share and enjoy time in one of three sukkot in the new FENTSTER exhibition, Like a Bird’s Nest from the artist collective the Sala-Manca Group together with local artists. Plus, meet some of the artists who helped create the outdoor sukkah commissioned by FENTSTER for this show: Rochelle Rubinstein and Jessica Thalmann. (Maxine Lee Ewaschuk also contributed work to this exciting project but she will be out of town.) Together we will also mark the Nation Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
Exhibition Tours with the Artists
Thursday, October 1
5 PM >>> in Spanish /// 7 pm >>> in English
ONLINE Conversation with Abu Suleiman of the Jahalin Bedouin Tribe
Friday, October 2 | Noon (EDT)
Mohammed (Abu Suleiman) al-Korshan - is the public representative of the al-Korshan family, members of the Jahalin Bedouin tribe that currently reside in Khan al Akhmar area between Jerusalem and Jericho in the West Bank. In 2014, the Sala-Manca Group, the artists behind the new FENTSTER exhibition Like a Bird’s Nest, connected with Abu Suleiman and together they collaborated on a project to transform one of the community’s shelters into a sukkah, which was later acquired by the Israel Museum in Jerusalem as a work of art. This collaboration is explored in the Toronto exhibition alongside additional projects connected to the displacement and impermanence of the sukkah. Artist Diego Rotman will be in conversation with Abu Suleiman about this project and how he approached it as a creative avenue to bring public awareness to the circumstances of the Bedouin who live in precarious conditions, displaced from their traditional herding lands. He will share updates on their circumstances in recent years and on the eco-tourism business that expanded as a result of the al-Korshan’s collaboration with Sala-Manca.
Register for the Zoom link
The Days Before, The Days After & The Days Ahead
Monday, October 5 | 7 PM
Location TBA
A conversation and community dialogue with artists Lea Mauas and Diego Rotman and researcher Bashar Al Shawwa. More details coming soon.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Learn more about the artists here
Bashar Alshawwa is a Palestinian Nakba refugee with family roots in Gaza, born outside Palestine, who returned to Palestine following the Oslo Accords. In 2014, he was severely injured by an Israeli sniper while participating in a peaceful protest, has lost dozens of family members, friends, and colleagues as a result of the war, and has advocated for non-violent activism since 2017. He is a distinguished researcher and expert in regional and international political affairs, specializing in conflict resolution, sustainable development, and advocacy, with extensive experience analyzing Palestinian and Israeli internal affairs. Bashar is a proficient analyst and advocate for joint efforts in regional peace making and leads efforts to build resilience against all forms of hate, including anti Palestinian, anti Muslim, and anti Jewish hate, strengthen community resilience to polarization linked to Middle East conflicts, and foster inter community dialogue and multi community alliances across the diaspora.
Online Conversation with writer Riwaa Abuquta
Tuesday, October 20 | Noon EDT
Riwaa Abuquta is a young writer, educator and storyteller from Rafah, Gaza. For the last year, she has been working with artists from the Sala-Manca Group. They connected after Abuquta formed a relationship via social media with “Officer Az-oolay,” a performative activist clown who attends public demonstrations in Jerusalem to deescalate tensions using humour and absurdity. Their friendship was the basis for an installation in an exhibition organized by Sala-Manca earlier this year. In keeping with the themes of shelter, displacement, and the meaning of home in our exhibition, Like a Bird’s Nest, Riwaa Abuquta will speak about her family’s current living circumstances, residing together in a tent in Al-Mawasi, Khan Younis, after being forced to leave their home in Rafah in May 2024. Months later, the family learned that their home had been destroyed. Abuquta’s sister Lulu, who has cerebral palsy, urgently needs a medical evacuation and specialized care that has been delayed for more than two years. Their tent is overcrowded, fragile, and offers little protection from the cold, rain, and wind. Abuquta will also share how she continues to write and create during this time of great difficulty and danger to share her story broadly, aiming to keep human connection alive across borders.