Across Life-Worlds: A Family History of Soviet Jewish Immigration Exhibit Opening
Advertisement
Join the Jewish Museum of Maryland for the opening celebration of Across Life-Worlds: A Family History of Soviet Jewish Immigration. Curated by Victoria Smolkin and Vlad Smolkin, the exhibition places the stories of several Soviet Jewish families who came to Maryland in conversation with the global and national politics that enabled their emigration. Through presenting a selection of lived experiences, the exhibition explores how American and Soviet Jews, who began as distant strangers on opposite sides of the Cold War divide, came to see each other as family.
In the late twentieth century, more than a million Soviet Jews left the Soviet Union—the largest ethnic emigration from the USSR, and the largest Jewish migration since the “Great Migration.” In the late 1980s and early 1990s Maryland became a major destination for this Soviet Jewish exodus. Across Life-Worlds follows the stories of these disparate branches of the Jewish family, tracing their converging fates during the Cold War and coming to a focus on their reunification in the U.S.
The exhibition curators, themselves children of Soviet Jewish emigration, capture family stories in interviews, photos, home videos, and objects that reflect the years before their departure and after their arrival—a period that also marks the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. From the American side, the exhibition features the stories of Maryland activists who dedicated themselves to making Soviet Jewish emigration a reality. From the Soviet side, the exhibition features the propaganda and politics that shaped Jewish life in the Soviet Union, from the pages of Pravda to the archives of the KGB. Together, the exhibition presents the collision of life-worlds at the point when ideas and ideals coalesced into life choices. For Soviet Jewish families—persecuted for their ethnic identity and alienated from their religious roots, emigration entailed both a rupture from their past and the possibility to re-envision their future.
1:00 PM | Event begins
1:30 PM | Remarks + Curator Q+A
Light kosher refreshments will be served.
Program tickets are available on a sliding scale. You can learn more about the event and register here: https://68398.blackbaudhosting.com/68398/tickets?tab=2&txobjid=c6d5a58e-b5bd-4c1e-89d4-ad599e6a106d
Accessibility: The Museum building, including the family and all-gender single-stall bathroom, is wheelchair accessible. Masks are welcome but not required. Complimentary masks will be available for anyone who would like one. Noise-reducing headphones and earplugs are available upon request at the front desk. American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation will be available for the formal presentation elements of the program. Please reach out to our team if you have additional accessibility needs.
Parking: Street-side parking is available, including in the parking lot located directly across the street from the Museum building. Please be sure to check parking signs and parking spot markings.
For questions, please contact [email protected] or 410.732.6400.
In the late twentieth century, more than a million Soviet Jews left the Soviet Union—the largest ethnic emigration from the USSR, and the largest Jewish migration since the “Great Migration.” In the late 1980s and early 1990s Maryland became a major destination for this Soviet Jewish exodus. Across Life-Worlds follows the stories of these disparate branches of the Jewish family, tracing their converging fates during the Cold War and coming to a focus on their reunification in the U.S.
The exhibition curators, themselves children of Soviet Jewish emigration, capture family stories in interviews, photos, home videos, and objects that reflect the years before their departure and after their arrival—a period that also marks the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. From the American side, the exhibition features the stories of Maryland activists who dedicated themselves to making Soviet Jewish emigration a reality. From the Soviet side, the exhibition features the propaganda and politics that shaped Jewish life in the Soviet Union, from the pages of Pravda to the archives of the KGB. Together, the exhibition presents the collision of life-worlds at the point when ideas and ideals coalesced into life choices. For Soviet Jewish families—persecuted for their ethnic identity and alienated from their religious roots, emigration entailed both a rupture from their past and the possibility to re-envision their future.
1:00 PM | Event begins
1:30 PM | Remarks + Curator Q+A
Light kosher refreshments will be served.
Program tickets are available on a sliding scale. You can learn more about the event and register here: https://68398.blackbaudhosting.com/68398/tickets?tab=2&txobjid=c6d5a58e-b5bd-4c1e-89d4-ad599e6a106d
Accessibility: The Museum building, including the family and all-gender single-stall bathroom, is wheelchair accessible. Masks are welcome but not required. Complimentary masks will be available for anyone who would like one. Noise-reducing headphones and earplugs are available upon request at the front desk. American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation will be available for the formal presentation elements of the program. Please reach out to our team if you have additional accessibility needs.
Parking: Street-side parking is available, including in the parking lot located directly across the street from the Museum building. Please be sure to check parking signs and parking spot markings.
For questions, please contact [email protected] or 410.732.6400.
Advertisement
Where is it happening?
15 Lloyd St, Baltimore, MD, United States, Maryland 21202
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.
Host or PublisherJewish Museum of Maryland
