ArtMem – Art and Holocaust Memory

The aim of ArtMem is to create new methods for passing on the memory of the Holocaust in a way that can also speak to young people. In the programme, secondary school students research and interpret artworks created during the Holocaust with the help of professional mentors. As a result, they create their own exhibition material, in which they present what these works mean to them. The project pays special attention to women artists and to lesser-known artistic testimonies. Another important aim is to connect the experiences of the past with questions of the present, such as prejudice, exclusion, human dignity, and democratic values.

In the first phase of the project, an international conference will take place. It will bring together researchers, historians, art historians, educators, museum professionals, and representatives of memorial sites. Participants will explore how visual works created during the Holocaust can play a stronger role in education and remembrance programmes.

Teacher training is also an important part of ArtMem. History teachers, art educators, museum educators, and other professionals will work together during the training. They will jointly develop methods and educational materials that support the sensitive and age-appropriate discussion of Holocaust artworks. The later museum and art education activities, connected to the exhibitions created by students, will build on this methodology. During these sessions, participants will not only look at the artworks, but also discuss them, ask questions, and interpret them together. In this way, young people encounter the artistic heritage of the Holocaust not only as passive viewers, but as active thinkers.

The public events of the project will also include performances. During these events, contemporary artists and young creators will respond to works made during the Holocaust. Through music, text, movement, improvisation, and other artistic forms, a new dialogue will be created between past and present.

At the end of the project, an international professional forum will take place, bringing together experts working in the fields of culture, education, and remembrance. The forum will present the experiences and methods developed during the project, and will explore how they can be used in other countries, schools, museums, and cultural institutions. In this way, ArtMem builds a new dialogue about the Holocaust, human dignity, prejudice, and democratic values through art, education, remembrance, and the active participation of young people.

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.