Day Two: The Museum of the Future

Washington day two.

On the second day of our Washington excursion we visited an old friend, saw the Holocaust Museum, the Smithsonian’s Museum of American History and very briefly took a look at the National Carousel (it was broken so we could not take a ride).  But the highlight of day two, for me, was The Holocaust Museum! I loved the holocaust museum. It was the most interesting presentation of any museum I have gone into.  They were beta testing an interactive exhibit, the building’s design was to give the impression of a 1930’s European city, and throughout the museum they encouraged guests to respond to what they were seeing.

To be honest, I was not that excited to see the Holocaust Museum, it was my wife who really wanted to visit the Holocaust museum.  I feel a sadness for the millions of lives lost during the Nazis’ reign.  I had a hard time getting through Elie Weisel’s Night let alone an entire museum.  However, as I walked through the exhibits I was struck by the presentation, it was not merely facts and numbers that they tried to convey, it was the emotion of it all.  Firsthand accounts and filmed interviews were everywhere.  They not only had exhibits about the Jewish holocaust but also the Cambodian genocide, and an exhibit on the war in Syria and refugees from that conflict.  I began to think it is rather like traveling through hell.  Some have described heaven as a place where one is united with passed loved ones and reminded of happy times. What if hell were the opposite and one must go through the most heinous acts humans have done (That definition of hell is not supported by any Biblical text by the way)? But it did strike me that is what the exhibits are supposed to do, they are meant to hit you on an emotional level. Which brings up an interesting question, are they giving an honest interpretation of history? Is this form of emotional history a legitimate way to present what happened?  Food for thought (A thought that I am still mulling over)!

 

By far my favorite exhibit was the interactive exhibit!  A beta testing program that features an image of a holocaust survivor by the name of Pinchas Gutter.  Mr. Gutter was interviewed 6 hours a day for a week and was asked 1200 questions.  His answers were downloaded into a computer so that patrons could ask him any question and he could answer as if he were sitting right there in front of you, much like how Siri on your IPhone would answer you back. According to the docent this exhibit is merely the beta prototype and in the future the Shoah foundation will develop a dozen digital survivors so that these survivors could tell their stories for generations to come.

Mr. Gutter requested that his interview not be edited so when you ask questions often there are long pauses where he was remembering the past (it actually adds to the realism of the interview). Here is a link to the Shoah Foundation’s site. https://sfi.usc.edu/news/2014/07/5882-audiences-interact-pinchas-gutter-early-new-dimensions-testimony-pilot

I also loved how the Holocaust Museum encouraged guests to interact and react to the museum. In one corner, the museum had three terminals available so that guests could post their thoughts about the museum.  Yet another way the museum attempts to not only see the museum but to participate in the museum (an example that other museums would be wise to follow).  Even the museum’s official guidebook says "This museum is not an answer. It is a question." It requests guests to reflect and react to the concept of genocide. What if all history museums asked their patrons to not simply accumulate knowledge but use that knowledge to make the world better.

The Holocaust Museum brought up many different emotions for me, the powerful message of stopping future genocides made feel sad yet hopeful. The museum’s use of the high tech digital survivor and the way they used oral history and artworks in many of its exhibits made me believe that this was a museum to be emulated.  The Holocaust Museum is the museum of the future.

How did you feel when visiting the Holocaust Museum? What is your favorite museum ever? What do you think of the concept of emotional history?  Write your experiences and thoughts in the comments below!