Woman of Letters tells the remarkable story of a writer driven to create, of a mother and her daughters, of memory and identity, of legacy and loss. A Russian-born Jewish author, Irène Némirovsky quickly rose to literary celebrity in her adopted France. But her fame and accomplishment, and even her conversion to Catholicism, were not enough to save her when war came; she was deported to Auschwitz in 1942.  Among the few items that she left behind was a valise that contained a leather notebook. Haunted by painful memories, her daughters avoided opening it until Denise read it more than fifty years after their mother’s death. She discovered not a diary, but a major literary work: the first two parts of an unfinished five-part novel, Suite Française. The exhibition illustrates Némirovsky’s life and her extraordinary literary gift to the world with stunning and heartbreaking artifacts, including the original manuscript and the valise, never before exhibited.

Co-produced with Institut Mémoires de l’Édition Contemporaine (IMEC).

This exhibition is made possible through generous funding from: American Express, David Berg Foundation, and the Grand Marnier Foundation; leadership gifts from: Nancy Fisher, Fanya Gottesfeld Heller, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council with the generous support of The September 11th Fund, and The Robert Sillins Family Foundation; and additional support provided by: The Diller – von Furstenberg Family Foundation, Embassy of France in the United States, Alexis Gregory Foundation, The Felix & Elizabeth Rohatyn Foundation, and Howard J. Rubenstein. Rotunda Salon furnished courtesy of Ligne Roset.

During the Holocaust, Jews throughout Europe, through individual and collective acts of resistance, sought to undermine the Nazi goal of the annihilation of the Jewish people. Jews engaged in a range of resistance activities with the aim of preserving Jewish life and dignity despite unimaginable difficulties.  Their efforts powerfully refute the popular perception that Jews were passive victims. Through testimony, archival footage, and authentic artifacts, the exhibition helps visitors to understand the dilemmas that Jews faced under impossible circumstances.  Whether praying clandestinely, documenting the experiences of Jews in the ghettos, or taking up arms to fight, these responses took many forms, but each and every one was a courageous act of resistance.

This exhibition was made possible through major funding from: Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, the Elizabeth Meyer Lorentz Fund of The New York Community Trust, the Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Humanities*.

Generous leadership gifts were made by: Frank and Cesia Blaichman, Patti Askwith Kenner and Family, George and Adele Klein, Ingeborg and Ira Leon Rennert, and Shalom and Varda Yoran.

Additional support was provided by: The David Berg Foundation, Nancy Fisher, Robert I. Goldman Foundation, The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation, L’Oréal USA, Righteous Persons Foundation, and Gil and Claire (Israelit) Zweig.

Media sponsorship provided by The Jewish Week.

*Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this exhibition do not necessarily reflect those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Learn more.

Read the New York Times review of Daring to Resist.

Click here to read part one of the review.

Click here for part two.

In 1938, a time when openings for Jewish refugees were hard to find, the government of the Dominican Republic offered to resettle up to 100,000 Jews. Sosúa, an abandoned banana plantation on the north coast of the island, would become a refuge to hundreds of Jews. The settlers were given resources to cultivate the land they were provided, and built a thriving town – one that still exists today. This exhibition will tell how the settlers were recruited and came to Sosúa, what awaited them there, what role the Dominican and U.S. governments and the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee played in the story, how the settlers worked with their Dominican neighbors to establish themselves, and what kind of a town they created. Sosúa speaks poignantly to one chapter in a shared Dominican and Jewish story.

This exhibition was made possible, in part, through major funding from the Leon Levy Foundation, with additional support provided by: NY State Senator Eric T. Schneiderman, Former City Council Speaker Gifford Miller, City Council Member Miguel Martinez, and the American Jewish Congress.

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Learn about the companion volume.

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Read about the exhibit in the Wall Street Journal.

Learn more about the exhibition on Telemundo

Hungarian-born photojournalist Paul Goldman fled to the British Mandate of  Palestine in 1940, where he chronicled the events leading up to the foundation of the State of Israel. Goldman’s photos of life before statehood, during the War of Independence, and the ingathering of dispersed Jews are complemented by rich memories of individuals who lived through those same events. Images and words together tell stories of the birth of Israel through the lenses of photographic and human memory.  From Tel Aviv streetscapes to the bombing of the King David Hotel, from street vendors to Prime Ministers; both the extraordinary and every-day document this monumental story.

This exhibition is made possible through the generous support of Spencer M. Partrich/Photo Art Israel, with additional funding provided by Harvey M. Krueger.

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On view June 14, 2007-January 1, 2008

Set against the backdrop of the seashore, the mountains, or the countryside, vacations have always been a meaningful part of American Jewish life. American Jews chose their own distinctive

destinations — Florida, the Catskills, Atlantic City, sites of Jewish heritage — to join with friends or in response to being excluded at other venues, creating temporary communities of like-minded people. Some vacations were pursuits of luxury and abundance, while others emphasized Jewish beliefs and traditions, but all expressed the excitement and promise of America. The history of Jewish vacationing provides a glimpse into Jewish values, past and present.

We welcome you to add your Jewish vacation photos to our upcoming exhibition. Send no more than two of your scanned or digital vacation photos to vacationphotos@mjhnyc.org. 

This exhibition is curated by the Jewish Museum of Maryland with generous support from the

National Endowment for the Humanities. The New York exhibition is supported, in part, by The Robert Sillins Family Foundation. Media sponsorship provided by The New Jersey Jewish Standard, New Jersey's oldest independent English language Jewish newspaper.

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On view January 16-December 2, 2007

The exhibition takes its name from advice given to Ruth Gruber by photographer Edward Steichen. But looking at her body of work—her journalism, books, photography, and activism— it is clear that with or without that advice, Ruth would do nothing short of observing and interpreting the world around her with an open heart, a keen eye, and the desire to see what is best in the human spirit. A world-renowned journalist now 95 years old, Gruber had backstage access to Jewish history: she escorted war refugees from Europe to America, visited DP camps, detailed the plight of the Exodus 1947, described the establishment of the State of Israel, and documented the State’s ingathering of refugees—from Europe, Iraq, North Africa, Yemen, and Ethiopia. Emissary for Harold Ickes and FDR, friend to Eleanor and Golda, Ruth’s

life and work are inextricably bound with the rescue and survival of the Jewish people.

From the Heart is made possible through the generosity and admiration of Friends of Ruth Gruber.

On view September 6, 2006 – March 16, 2007

This exhibition traces the life of Karol Wojtyla from his childhood in Poland through World War II and beyond.  The exhibition examines Pope John Paul II’s enduring friendship with Jews, and how these relationships informed his ministry and papacy, shaping significantly the relationship between the Church and the Jewish people.

A Blessing to One Another: Pope John Paul II and the Jewish People was created and produced by Xavier University (Cincinnati), Hillel Jewish Student Center (Cincinnati), and The Shtetl Foundation. The New York exhibition is presented by the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust thanks to the generosity of Peter S. Kalikow, The Russell Berrie Foundation, The Fritz and Adelaide Kauffmann Foundation: Elliot M. Hershberg, Theodore N. Mirvis, Bernard Turner; the Ollendorff Center for Religious and Human Understanding, the Oster Family Foundation, and the Theodore and Renee Weiler Foundation: Richard I. Kandel. The Museum also thanks the Pave the Way Foundation and the Center for Interreligious Understanding. The lead financial sponsors of A Blessing To One Another are the Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati and Xavier University. Media Sponsorship provided by New York Post.

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Ours to Fight For: American Jews In the Second World War

November 11, 2003 - December 31, 2006

The inaugural exhibition for the Robert M. Morgenthau wing, Ours To Fight For: American Jews in the Second World War was named the grand-prize winner of the Excellence in Exhibition Competition at the American Association of Museums Annual Meeting in New Orleans. Citing the exhibition's use of the first-person narrative, the judges felt this approach engaged museum visitors and allowed them to make connections with the experiences of soldiers 60 years ago and troops serving today.

The exhibition companion volume, Ours To Fight For: American Jewish Voices from the Second World War, chronicles the experience of American Jewish men and women who came together with other Americans to heed their nation's call to arms. Please visit the Museum Shop to purchase this book.

Download ZIP file with press ready images

LAUNCH ONLINE EXHIBITION NOW

Beginning in February 2008, Ours To Fight For will be traveling. Check back to see where and when the exhibition will be on view. If you would like to bring the exhibition to your venue, please contact travelingexhibitions@mjhnyc.org.

Major funding for this exhibition has been generously provided by Jack and Susan Rudin and Family in memory of Lewis Rudin; by Irving Schneider in memory of his friend, Lewis Rudin; and by Irving and June Paler in memory of June's father, Duncan Robertson, who fought for justice in both World Wars. Additional support provided by Verizon Foundation and EveryoneSmile.com.

Life in Shadows: Hidden Children and the Holocaust

Thousands of Jewish children survived the Holocaust by living with false identities; by being physically concealed in attics, cellars, barns, or sewers; or by being protected by clergy in convents and monasteries. For these children, going into hiding often meant leaving their families and identities behind. Those who could not pass as non-Jews endured extreme loneliness, physical pain, and constant fear, living silently in cramped and dark quarters. Life in hiding was never safe and was always fraught with danger, where a careless remark, a denunciation, or the murmurings of inquisitive neighbors could lead to discovery and death. The exhibition uses photographs, artifacts, and oral histories to tell the stories of children hidden during the Holocaust.

For Programs Related to this Exhibition, please click here.

This exhibition is organized and circulated by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. The Museum of Jewish Heritage - A Living Memorial to the Holocaust is the final stop on a national tour for the exhibition. It was seen previously at the Arts Center of Battle Creek in Michigan, and the Spertus Institute of Jewish Studies in Chicago, Illinois.  

Learn more about Life In Shadows. Visit the online preview.

Download the press release for Hidden Children.

On view Monday, June 7 to October 11, 2004
Featuring original black-and-white photographs by Bill Aron

Shalom Y'all, open June 7, 2004 through September 13, 2004, tells the unique story of the Southern Jewish experience through three distinct voices: 44 black-and-white photographs, a narrative woven into descriptive captions of the photographs, and stories told by southern Jews about being Jewish in the South. It presents a multidimensional portrait of contemporary Jewish life in the Deep South as it has evolved from the early 1700s. The material is drawn from the book Shalom Y'all: Images of Jewish Life in the American South, photographs by Bill Aron with text by Vicki Reikes Fox.

The exhibition, organized by the Skirball Cultural Center and Museum, is based on an original project by the Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience in Jackson, Mississippi and is supported by grants from Steven Spielberg's Righteous Persons Foundation and the Betty and Ben Lamensdorf Family.