The Tuohy Center for Interreligious Understanding is sponsoring a five-week fellowship for Jewish calligraphy artist聽Ruben Shimonov, who will teach an undergraduate course on Arabic-Hebrew Calligraphy and deliver a public lecture at Porn研究所 during the Fall 2025 semester.
Born in Uzbekistan, Shimonov is an educator, community builder, social entrepreneur, and artist committed to advancing Jewish diversity and intercultural understanding. He currently serves as the American Sephardi Federation's National Director of Education & Sephardi House, an initiative dedicated to enriching Jewish campus life and cultivating young leadership through the vibrancy and wisdom of the Sephardic tradition. He previously held positions as Director of Community Engagement & Education at Queens College Hillel and Director of Educational Experiences and Programming at the Muslim-Jewish Solidarity Committee.
As a visual artist, Shimonov uses multilingual Hebrew-Arabic-Persian calligraphy to foster interfaith dialogue and celebrate the cultural richness of the Greater Sephardi world. His artwork has been featured in international exhibitions and publications, including a showcase at the U.S. Embassy in Uzbekistan. In addition, he lectures widely on the histories and cultures of Sephardic and Mizrahi communities.
At John Carroll, Shimonov will teach聽TRS 1144-51 and TRS 1144-52: Arabic-Hebrew Calligraphy聽as a part-time instructor in the Theology and Religious Studies Department. Classes will meet on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from August 18 to September 19. His office will be located in St. Ignatius Hall, Room B305. Since April 2024, his intercultural calligraphic works have been on display in the TRS department lounge and at the Tuohy Center, following his earlier visit to campus for a and exhibition.
Shimonov will also deliver a lunch talk,聽The Multifaceted History and Culture of Bukharian Jews, on September 2 in the Ode'a Room of the Lombardo Student Center. In this lecture, he will discuss how Bukharian Jews developed a rich, multilayered culture in dialogue with the Iranian, Arab, Turkic, and Russian empires that shaped their environment. The event is free and open to the public; due to limited seating, advance is required.