The ultramodern multimedia exhibition, which is at the same time a meeting, debate and discussion floor, will open on 4 December at Beth Hatefutsoth, the Museum of the Jewish Diaspora in Tel Aviv. The exhibition will run through 20 February 2009.
A rich programme of meetings will accompany the exhibition. Journalists, researchers, historians, designers and young people will discuss the present day significance of history, the impact of Polish Jews on the establishment and the character of the State of Israel, or the ways in which contemporary arts have commemorated history and in what ways that has been significant. The meetings will be registered and ultimately they will become an integral part of the exhibition.
The opening will be distinguished by the presence of Her Excellency, Agnieszka Magdziek-Miszewska, Polish Ambassador to Israel. Professor David Assaf of the Tel Aviv University will grace the exhibition opening ceremony with his lecture entitled "We, Polish Jews - an Israeli historian at the Museum of the History of Polish Jews".
Programme of meetings and discussions:
December 7, 2008
"Warsaw: new emergence. Short description of artistic and architectural practices in public domain".
Discussion of Polish and Israeli designers, with keynote address of Jakub Szczęsny of CENTRALA Group. Moderator: Jakub Szczęsny, CENTRALA Group.
December 8, 2008
"What if"
Open discussion of Israeli journalists. Moderator: Sever Plocker, journalist of Jedijot Achronot.
December 9, 2008
"Lost In translation"
Meeting with professors of Tel Aviv University with Polish roots: On relations with the Polish culture and language. Moderator: Nili Amit, Museum of the History of Polish Jews.
December 10, 2008
"I am Polish - I am Israeli"
Meeting with participants of PIYE, a youth exchange programme: On identity and young people in the contemporary world. Moderator: Natasza Niedzielska, PIYE programme participant.
In addition to the abovementioned, the programme of events provides for many more meetings with; among others, directors of educational institutions, historians, researchers and students.
The ultramodern multimedia exhibition presents over 1000 years of Jewish history in the Polish lands. The story is told through seven films. The subsequent shorts tell of different historical times. As a whole they offer the viewers an opportunity of making a journey in time: from Middle Ages to the present. The visitor can take a guided tour: through the facts of history by the creators of the respective Museum galleries and through the realm of imagination by a band of animated characters.
The historical narrative and the rich iconography are enhanced by modern animations; making the message intriguingly equivocal and thought provoking.
When communicating history we always tell the story of the past. However, the most important aspect of this historical exhibition in the present. The present is the primary point of reference for history. This is why the central area of the exhibition is reserved for a Discussion Forum, a place for reflection on the importance of history for the contemporary world and for each of us, here and now. The Discussion Forum will be a place of many meetings. Registered and played on monitor screens, these form integral or possibly the central part of the exhibition.
The films the exhibition presents correspond with the galleries of the Museum of the History of Polish Jews in the making while the creators of the respective galleries provide the narrative:
1. First Encounters, narrated by professor Hanna Zaremska, Institute of History, Polish Academy of Sciences;
2. Paradisus Judeaorum, narrated by Adam Teller Ph.D., Haifa University;
3. Town, narrated by Adam Teller Ph.D., Haifa University;
4. Under Three Empires, narrated by Marcin Wodziński Ph.D., University of Wrocław;
5. Street - Poland in the Interbellum Period, narrated by Jerzy Halbersztadt, Director of the Museum of the History of Polish Jews;
6. The Holocaust, narrated by Jacek Leociak Ph.D., Institute of Literary Research, Polish Academy of Sciences;
7. After 1945, narrated by Helena Datner, Jewish Historical Institute and professor Stanisław Krajewski, Warsaw University.
The Museum of the History of Polish Jews, an ultramodern multimedia cultural and educational centre, is currently under development in Warsaw, at the site of the Warsaw Ghetto, in the very heart of the pre-war Jewish quarter. It will stand opposite the Monument to the Warsaw Ghetto Heroes, the icon of Jewish Warsaw. Devoted entirely to the history of the Jewish people that flourished in the Polish lands for near 1000 years, it is slated to become one of the most important historical and educational institutions of its kind in Poland. The mission declares that the Museum's mandate is to exhibit the history of the Jews on the historical territory of the old Republic of Poland, including Warsaw. The Museum will foster respect for Jewish tradition and culture and stimulate dialogue in the spirit of mutual acceptance and tolerance. It will be a vital point on the map of places preserving the memory of the Polish Jews as it communicates their history in a context much broader than the Holocaust drama alone. The Museum of the History of Polish Jews plans to open in the year 2011.
More info at www.jewishmuseum.org.pl.
