Venue: Jewish Museum Vienna , Dorotheergasse 11, 1010 Vienna
Public round table discussion, organized by the CEU Jewish Studies Program and the research seminar of the CEU History Department.
Jewish Museums, as they existed in the 1890s, served as inward-looking sanctuaries for community memory. However, at the turn of the 21st century, a different type of institution emerged, rapidly becoming a significant presence in the cultural life of European metropolises. The most outstanding locations, such as the POLIN Museum, inaugurated in Warsaw in 2014, narrate the Jewish history of an entire nation and draw half a million visitors per year—both Jewish and non-Jewish, locals and tourists alike. Much like its counterparts, the Jewish Museum Vienna presents itself as “a place of encounter, interaction and understanding, which seeks to raise awareness of Jewish history, religion, and culture”. In their dialogic mission, Jewish museums showcase and embody the interaction between Jewish and non-Jewish lifeworlds, proposing a diaspora perspective of European society and giving voice to its grappling with historical guilt and its aspirations for pluralism and inclusion. During this discussion, two directors of major Jewish Museums will speak about the goals and visions motivating their work. Among other questions, they will ask whether the vigorous presence of their museums in public controversies has preserved or overridden the traditional roles of serving as sites for Jewish introspection and self-experience.
Participants:
Barbara Staudinger, director of the Jewish Museum Vienna
Bernhard Purin, director of the Jewish Museum Munich.
Moderation:
Felicitas Heimann-Jelinek