Tom Block

Thomas Block is a writer and artist who has exhibited in solo and group shows across the United States and in Spain and Portugal for the last 20 years. He currently has several nonfiction books, a trilogy of plays, and a series of paintings in the works.Tom published his first nonfiction work, “Shalom/Salaam: A Story of a Mystical Fraternity,” in the United States and in Turkey in 2010. Publishers Weekly said: “Block’s evident enthusiasm for the revelation of these common roots as a way forward for Muslim–Jewish relations propels this great read.” Writing about Tom’s exhibition of murals and performances of his 2012 play, collectively titled “White Noise,” one reviewer said, “As the paintings indicated, there’s a lot going on beneath the surface of this particular artist. . . . [and] there’s a lot going on in this 80-minute production. It’s not strictly a night at the theatre, though. It’s a night in the gallery, a fascinating and rewarding look at the multiple dimensions of faith, theory, and inspiration that go into Block’s work.” [DC Theatre Scene, June 11, 2012] That description aptly sums up the richness of thought and depth of perspective found in Tom’s books.In 2013, Tom was an invited participant in the Jiwar Artist Residency in Barcelona, Spain, and he was invited to give an interview with Steven Appel, Assistant Director of the Queens College Center for Ethnic, Racial & Religious Understanding in New York, with developmental readings of three plays in Manhattan in December. His first novel, The Fool Returns, was published in Istanbul, Turkey, in 2012.