A Visit to Auschwitz Exhibition in Boston Recalls One of History’s Darkest Periods
The traveling exhibition Auschwitz. Not Long Ago. Not Far Away, which includes some 700 artifacts, many from Auschwitz, the Nazis’ largest concentration camp, is on view in Boston through September 2. Photos by Musealia
A Visit to Auschwitz Exhibition in Boston Recalls One of History’s Darkest Periods
Auschwitz. Not Long Ago. Not Far Away provides “a potent reminder of the importance of the past in understanding our present,” says Nancy Harrowitz, director of BU’s Elie Wiesel Center for Jewish Studies
A powerful exhibition recalling the horrors of the Holocaust has just opened in Boston. Auschwitz. Not Long Ago. Not Far Away includes more than 700 artifacts from what was the largest concentration camp established by the Nazis during World War II under German Chancellor Adolf Hitler. More than one million people died there between 1940 and 1945.
The traveling exhibition represents an extraordinary collaboration among more than 20 museums across the globe, including the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum, the Anne Frank House, and Yad Vashem, and it is described as the first traveling exhibition on Auschwitz. It is on view at the Castle at Park Plaza through September 2.
The show arrives in Boston at a time of rising antisemitism and bias crimes in the United States and around the world, giving it a particular urgency. The show is arranged chronologically. Among the hundreds of objects included are suitcases that were packed by Jews deported to Auschwitz, portions of an original prison barrack, concrete posts that served as part of the fence that surrounded the camp, a single woman’s red shoe set against a photo of hundreds of shoes confiscated from Auschwitz detainees on their way to the gas chambers, a child’s doll, hundreds of buttons removed from detainees’ clothing, and much more. The vast collection of personal objects is meant to humanize the lives lost at Auschwitz and to serve as a remembrance and as a reminder of the need to combat hate and evil wherever it exists.
Since opening in late March, the exhibition has attracted sellout crowds. Among the first people to see it was Nancy Harrowitz, director of Boston University’s Elie Wiesel Center for Jewish Studies, a College of Arts & Sciences professor of Italian and of Jewish studies, and director of the University’s major in Holocaust, Genocide, and Human Rights Studies. BU Today asked her to share her impressions about the show.
Q&A
With Nancy Harrowitz
BU Today: What struck you the most about Auschwitz. Not Long Ago. Not Far Away?
Nancy Harrowitz: The crowds in attendance: a lot of people were very interested in seeing it, most tickets for that weekend had sold out, and the large crowd the day I was there was quiet and very absorbed in the experience.
BU Today: What was the mood like the day you attended?
Nancy Harrowitz: Somber, sad, respectful. Some people were visibly overwhelmed. There was a hush in the rooms that was particularly noticeable considering how many people were in attendance.
BU Today: You’ve seen numerous exhibitions about the Holocaust. How is this one different?
Nancy Harrowitz: This one offers more artifacts and mini videos than most I’ve seen, including survivor testimonies.
A woman’s dress shoe (from left), a pair of spectacles, and buttons from garments taken from detainees on their way to the gas chamber are among the hundreds of objects on view in Auschwitz. Not Long Ago. Not Far Away.
BU Today: What is the exhibition’s greatest strength, in your mind?
The sheer number of physical objects, including artifacts, in a rather small space. The tall poles holding barbed wire, used at the camp, made a very strong impression. Overall, I think that because of all the artifacts and visual presentations, and a crowded feeling in the rooms that are so full of material, the exhibition was able to bring visitors a little closer to the possibility of imagining the physical camp and taking in what happened there.
BU Today: The title of the show seems to suggest that one of the exhibition’s goals is to remind visitors that the horror of Auschwitz is not some long-ago event.
This powerful title not only evokes Auschwitz as part of our not-so-distant past, it [also] evokes it as a possible present and future, grimly reminding us that the conditions that produced the Holocaust are not so far from our society as we’d like to think.
BU Today: There are more than 700 artifacts on display here. Were there one or two that you found particularly powerful?
The iconic barbed wire towers. They are frequently seen in films and documentaries about Auschwitz. To see them in person, so to speak, was chilling, even frightening. It brought past visual experiences to the immediate present.
BU Today: The exhibition arrives in Boston at a time of rising antisemitism and growing denial of the Holocaust’s existence. How important is an event like this in conveying the atrocities that happened?
The exhibition is very important, considering the timing of what’s happening today. I noticed a deep absorption on the part of the people who were there: more intense than I’ve seen at other museums. I had a couple of conversations with other attendees, who referenced the growing antisemitism of our time. One couple had been there for over three hours, and were completely immersed in the experience. I thought it significant that most people were reading every panel and looking at everything exhibited with great attention and focus.
BU Today: What do you hope visitors take away from seeing the show?
I hope they leave with a better understanding of the consequences of dehumanization, bigotry, and hate, and a deeper knowledge of the conditions that led to the Holocaust and its atrocities.
BU Today: In your view, why is it important for people to see this exhibition?
To learn about this tragic history and to pay more attention to warning signs, such as we are experiencing today. It’s a very important exhibition and well worth seeing. It also provides a potent reminder of the importance of the past in understanding our present.
Auschwitz. Not Long Ago. Not Far Away is on view at the Castle at Park Plaza, 130 Columbus Ave., Boston, through September 2. Tickets start at $27.95. Discounts are available for children, seniors, and groups of 10 or more. Book tickets here. The show is recommended for ages 12-plus.
See a trailer for the exhibition here.
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