- Craft
- Printed and hand-sewn tallitot
Goren Judaica is the work of Harriet R. Goren, a New York graphic designer who turns Hebrew liturgy into tallitot. She was an undergraduate painting major at Yale, where she also sang in choirs, and spent her career in identity, print and web design before starting Goren Judaica in 2011.
The spark came from synagogue. Reconnecting with Jewish life through a lively congregation, she trained to chant Torah and began experimenting with Hebrew letterforms and color. She combines hand-drawn lettering with digital paint, has the artwork printed on fabric, then sews the shawls and ties the tzitzit herself. The words aren't always meant to be read literally; she tries to capture through shape and gesture how she experiences the texts. Several of her designs grew from the stained-glass windows, tiles and organ pipes of B'nai Jeshurun in Manhattan.
Wearing a tallit, she says, "feels like being wrapped in comfort and safety, and helps me pray more honestly." Her work has appeared in the Women of Reform Judaism calendar and in American Guild of Judaic Art exhibitions. She also makes art prints and challah covers.
Good to know
- EducationPainting major, Yale
- ExhibitionsAmerican Guild of Judaic Art (2017–2018)
- PublicationWomen of Reform Judaism calendar, 2014–2015
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