Jewish Museum My experience concerning the Core Exhibition about Jewish life prior to, throughout, and after the Holocaust expressed through individual accounts and possessions was phenomenal. I found that the incredible displays explored characteristics of historical events and a deep, developing heritage. I discovered that through the Jewish Museum, I have learned to appreciate public programs that celebrate the fruitfulness of Jewish traditions and beliefs.

"The Rotunda"

I made my way through the uniquely winding security leading in to the museum where the multimedia presentation was at. Upon coming to the first hall, I heard a little music and from there followed it to the rotunda, where I saw images being projected on to walls all around the huge area. During the 9-minute multimedia presentation, there were three themes that were displayed. They were the following: "Remember, never to forget." The Ferdinand and Isabella letter of 1492 and "Jewish Renewal." The theme that stood out to me the most was the "Remember, never to forget" theme because mostly it is the reason why the museum exists which is to remind us not to repeat history.

The Floors of Culture

Through my journey, I discovered that the first floor of the Core Exhibition delve into exciting and multilayered Jewish lifespan in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Personal objects and family pictures supplemented by written films,...

With that said, there were three intriguing objects on the first floor that I chose.
The last Folio

This book of photos caught my attention because somewhere around 70 years ago, on March 25th of 1942, on a train filled with a 1000 young Jewish women, were marched off to their deaths from Slovakia to Auschwitz, and these portraits done by a man named Yuri Dojc. What actually got my attention about this exhibition is its presentation. There are six pictures in each row, proposing the ceremonial six of the Jewish star. There are little lights in the ceiling to make sure you won't make a misstep, but the photographs are weakly lit, all of them, by a light that is from below in the top section or row, and from the top in the lower one. I think that the theme is that this object reflects that of both mourning the loss and also celebrating unfinished life.

Also in the picture book series were school books of Jewish children. While looking at them, it was scary to me knowing that they have to be thrown backwards by school children that were being horded off for the death camps. It dawned on me that they had sat unchanged for over 60 years when everyday life was interrupted. To me this brought back memories of family members of mine that went through something similar in Sudan. It was shocking to understand how my cousins had to leave their school…