This year, on Friday 27 January, Manchester Jewish Museum will mark the international Holocaust Memorial Day with an Open Day and special events co-created with a group of ‘Creative Activists’.
WHO ARE THE CREATIVE ACTIVISTS?
Our ‘Creative Activists’ are a group of people aged 16-30, who are seeking to create powerful acts of sharing and connection with our local communities to help make a positive difference in the world. In the last few months they’ve be working with us as part of Imperial War Museum’s Second World War and Holocaust Partnership Programme, to explore creative ways of commemorating the Holocaust and connecting these stories with our local communities. This event is the culmination and celebration of their fascinating work.
Join us to see a new temporary textile exhibition sharing the untold stories of Ordinary People. Participate in a baking workshop, where we’ll be trying out recipes inspired by stories from the museum’s collection. Meet the Manchester-based textile artist, Laura Nathan, and add your piece to her reflective installation. See a Klezmer Fiddle performance by Anna Lowenstein and listen to the new song written and performed by the museum’s very own Song-Writing & Poetry Group. There will also be opportunities to reflect on the events and your own experiences through conversation and creative activities throughout the day. See our full programme of events below.
By organising this event we want to give everyone a chance to commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day in their own, personal way and to encourage conversations about how we all, as ‘Ordinary People’, can make connections to make things better.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
On Friday 27 January the admission to the museum will be free for everyone. Please book your free ticket for the ‘Museum Open Day’ below.
The Baking Workshop is free of charge but has a limited capacity, so please book a separate ticket for it if you’d like to join us.
The recommended age for these events is 16+.
Please note, that during the events you may see some content containing difficult themes of conflict, war and persecution. As an event which shares people’s stories, in a multitude of ways, we understand that people may experience a range of different emotions. Reflection and learning from the past is a journey, and any emotions, whether that’s joy, laughter, sadness or empathy play an important part in commemoration. There will be spaces during the event for quiet thought, time to take a break and to speak to others and make connections.
PROGRAMME OF EVENTS
10:30-11:30Identity & Heritage through Textiles
Location: Synagogue’s Ladies Gallery (top floor of the synagogue)
Meet Laura Nathan, a Manchester-based contemporary textile artist as she takes you through her reflective works, which explore her Jewish family heritage through questions, textiles, creative processes and personal narratives.
11:00-11:30 Stories and Silences through Music: Song writing and Poetry Group Performance Location: Museum gallery
Manchester Jewish Museum’s Song Writing and Poetry Group have been collaborating with the Creative Activists to create songs from their reflective poems, which were inspired by reading, listening and learning about lesser-known Holocaust and Second World War stories from the Museum’s collection.
12:00-13:00 Baking to Remember Location: Learning Studio additional bookings required
Food can bring people together, it can break down bridges, start conversation and allow us to explore the diverse cultural heritages that make up our city of Manchester. In this session we’ll be baking two types of bread, representing two communities who have experienced or are experiencing journeys as refugees.
13:15-14:15 Anna Lowenstein: Klezmer Fidl Concert Location: Synagogue
Anna Lowenstein takes us on a musical journey of the heritage, sounds and feelings of the Klezmer tradition as she presents a solo concert of Klezmer music in the historic setting of our synagogue.
Apart from the above events visitors will also get a chance to see MJM’s new textile exhibition, which explores themes of commemoration, personal stories and local activism.
