Shylock's Venice: The Cultural, Historic and Artistic Traditions of the First Jewish Ghetto

Shylock’s Venice traces the remarkable evolution of the world’s first Jewish ghetto, founded in 1516—a distinct island enclave both insular and porous. Separated by laws and customs, the ghetto became a site of daily exchange in early modern Venice, a place of frequent encounter where people, goods, languages, and ideas intermingled. Paradoxically, the celebrated tolerance of La Serenissima coexisted with the imposition of severe economic restrictions, persistent social stigma, and periodic outbreaks of prejudice against its Jewish inhabitants.

Led by an American who spent nearly fifteen years teaching art history in Italy and researching Jewish Venice—this engaging talk examines the complexities of both marginalization and inclusion, uncovering facets of the city’s past as refracted through its Jewish community. While the discussion centers on the period 1516–1797, it also offers ample opportunity to explore Jewish life in present-day Venice, highlighting the resilience and creativity that continue to shape the community. Even if you’ve visited Venice before, vivid storytelling and evocative visuals will reveal an entirely different side of the city through the lens of its rich Jewish history.

Lisa Rubenstein Calevi was an independent scholar for 20 years, affiliated with institutions such as the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo (Florence), the Museo di Castelvecchio (Verona), Syracuse University (Florence), Boston University (Padua), Trinity College, University of Oregon, Portland State University, and Pacific University. Lisa is a contributor to the Cambridge Dictionary of Judaism and Jewish Culture and has published and lectured widely on Italian Jewish history, art, and culture, including invited talks for the American Association of Italian Studies, the University of Virginia and Yale Alumni Associations, University of California (Santa Cruz), the Italian Institute of Culture, and Museo Italo Americano (San Francisco). She was a member of the National Endowment for the Humanities Institute "Venice, the Jews, and Italian Culture," and has also led numerous heritage tours through Jewish Italy. Lisa currently works in Alumni Affairs and Development at Harvard University.