Use tableware from the Common Ground installation and connect with fellow diners as you take part in an interactive culinary journey celebrating the ancient Ethiopian Jewish holiday of Sigd through traditional food, music, and photography. As its title suggests, Common Ground is a community-activated artwork that celebrates American pluralism while also fostering human connection through shared meals and other collaborative gatherings. 

Leading the dialogue is Beza Abebe, a trailblazer in researching topics like Sigd in America and authenticity in storytelling with over a decade of experience advocating for underrepresented voices in Ethiopia, Israel, and the United States, in conversation with Foodways Scholar Dr. Scott Alves Barton.

Photography on display by Kelly Fogel and live music by Alula Tzadik.

Menu

Passed Appetizers

Vegetable and Lentil Sambusa (V) 
Ground Lamb Sambusa
Spiced Injera Crisps with Buticha (Ethiopian Hummus) (V)
Berbere Fried Olives

Bowl

Colorful Ethiopian Chopped Salad (V)

Buffet

Gomen Hamli (Braised Collard Greens) (V)
Duba Wot (Pumpkin Stew with Date Honey) (V)
Music-in-Your-Mouth Cabbage with Potatoes and Carrots (V)
Derho Tsebhi (Spiced Chicken Stew) (DF)( GF)

Dessert

Negesti Saba (Chocolate Cardamom Cake) (Vg)

Recipes inspired from Gursha: Timeless Recipes for Modern Kitchens, from Ethiopia, Israel, Harlem, and Beyond by Beejhy Barhany

Los Angeles–based artist Adam Silverman collected clay, water, and wood ash from all fifty American states, Washington, DC, and the five inhabited US Territories and combined them to create a set of tableware and ceremonial pots. The resulting 224 ceramic objects, titled Common Ground, is a community-activated artwork that celebrates American pluralism while also fostering human connection through shared meals and collaborative installations.

Dr. Beza Abebe is a passionate advocate for diversity, human rights, and social justice, with more than fifteen years of international experience across Ethiopia, Israel, and the United States. Born in Ethiopia, she made aliyah to Israel—where she engaged in legal and philanthropic work focused on empowering the Ethiopian-Israeli community—before relocating to the San Francisco Bay Area to continue her academic and community-building work. Her academic credentials include: Doctorate in International Law from Golden Gate University (San Francisco), Master’s in Government & Diplomacy from IDC Herzliya (Israel), LL.M. from Tel Aviv University (Israel), LLB/JD from Hawassa University (Ethiopia).

Dr. Abebe’s research explores topics such as the holiday Sigd in America, authentic storytelling, and the preservation of diverse Jewish identities. Professionally, she has worked in advocacy, human rights activism, philanthropy, education, community development, and global Jewish engagement. She serves as a Research Fellow at Be’chol Lashon, where she advances Jewish diversity and inclusive belonging. In her role as the 2023 Ralph Goldman Fellow with Jewish Agency for Israel (JDC), she brought her Ethiopian- and Israeli-Jewish perspective to international humanitarian and community-building initiatives. Driven by her identity as a mother and community member, Dr. Abebe emphasizes the power of cultural traditions—especially food, music, clothing, and heritage—to uplift the Ethiopian Jewish (Beta Israel) experience and shape stronger, more inclusive Jewish futures.

Kelly Fogel, a native Los Angeles-based documentary photographer, blends diverse experiences with a passion for social change through her lens. From Havana's skateboarders to transitioning communities worldwide, her work spans five continents, shedding light on untold stories. Kelly's commitment to wildlife conservation and social justice shines through her work. Whether documenting protests, photographing conservation stories for wildlife or mentoring and teaching young photographers, she's dedicated to making a compassionate impact, one frame at a time. 

Alula Tzadik was born in a small village in Ethiopia called Alemaya, which means “a place where you can see the world.” Alula’s mother was Jewish and his father was Christian. Tzadik was taken at birth from his mother because of her religion and did not know he was Jewish for the longest time. Alula was teased by kids and elders at the Christian orphanage. But Tzadik never forgot his mother. He found her, and lived with her learning Hebrew songs and prayers. Alula’s music is an expression of the many disparate strands of his life. His songs have Hebrew, Amharic, Latin, and German musical influences overlaid by American hip-hop and reggae. He speaks eight languages and sings in over ten. Alula also plays twelve musical instruments including the piano, guitar, bass, drums, harmonica, and kirar, a harp-like instrument that dates back to the time of King David.

For more on Common Ground, artist Adam Silverman, and Foodways Scholar Dr. Scott Alves Barton, click here.