Annual Report. association of european jewish museums

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1 Annual Report association

2 Association of European Jewish Museums Annual Report 2015 Table of Contents Introduction 3 Activities 5 Grants 12 Cooperation 20 Committees 22 New members 23 Communication & website 23 Supporters 24 Financial report 25 Board & staff 26 Colophon 26

3 Association of European Jewish Museums Introduction The Association of European Jewish Museums is developing further. Our conferences and educational seminars, curatorial training programmes and consulting activities attract more participants than ever and help us to make the AEJM a vivid force in the field. With a new attractive website that provides news and information about the activities of the AEJM and our members across Europe, we are now able to reach out to the general public. Together with our members we will make this platform useful for anyone interested in Jewish in Europe, and encourage a continuous reflection on the significance of Jewish material culture in a world of turmoil and experiences of loss, migration and shattered experiences. The year 2015 became a watershed for Europe: hundreds of thousands of refugees crossed borders and this humanitarian crisis forcefully reminded the European community that globalization is not only about markets and profits. While Europe was facing its refugee crisis and new forms of violent attacks, Israel and Palestine have been shaken by new waves of violence as well. In November 2015 our Annual Conference took place outside Europe for the first time, in Jerusalem where The Israel Museum celebrated its 50 th anniversary. The Conference did not avoid touching on uncomfortable questions about the role of in our respective societies: how do we, as institutions, creating meaning and belonging, present and define the other and the self? How do we talk about belonging? Who is inside and who is outside? Workshop at the Annual Conference Israel Museum While in Europe Jews have been considered a significant other for so many centuries, institutions in Israel are confronting a different challenge. How do they integrate the other of Israeli society, an other that belongs to the country with the same right? The animated debates during the Conference and the amicable atmosphere showed once more the particular strength of our Association it does not shy away from serious controversy, but remains aware of our mutual interests. In 2015 the AEJM was able to continue its programming with a new grant from the Rothschild Foundation Europe (Hanadiv) in London. The support from the Foundation has grown into a mutual collaboration in various fields, and is now secured for another four years. The new grant enabled the AEJM to extend its Advisory Visits Grant Programme (AVGP), which is increasingly used by our members as a source of consultation and support as they Annual Report

4 Association of European Jewish Museums confront various challenges in the fields of collections management, permanent exhibitions and education. The programme fosters exchange and makes use of the rich reservoir of expertise amongst our members. We are also proud of the support from other partners, such as the David Berg Foundation in New York, which is helping us develop our Museum Educators Seminar even further. In collaboration with the Jewish Museum Berlin and with the generous help of the German Federal Foreign Office, the AEJM could again offer two Advanced Curatorial Education Programmes, turning our programme into a serious qualification for museum curators working in Jewish or with Jewish collections. This growing international support, even from overseas, shows the appreciation of our work and expertise. I would like to thank all members of the AEJM for their energy and creativity and the interest in our joint activities. Hosting conferences, seminars and meetings, and participating actively in these events, they make AEJM a lively force of improvement and a dynamic marketplace of ideas and collaborations. This force helps preserve and strengthen the independent and professional position of our members towards evolving challenges in Europe, and it encourages us to develop the AEJM even further. and Bernhard Purin (Munich). They devote their ideas, time and energy into working together for our mutual interests, adding this to their workload in their respective institutions. My thanks go, last but not least, to Eva Koppen, our Senior Project Manager, who devotes all her creativity, experience and energy to the AEJM s further development, programmes, events and daily business, and to Ardjuna Candotti who worked with us as our Community Manager in 2015, helping us to make the new website a strong tool of communication. In 2016 we will meet in Copenhagen. The Danish Jewish Museum, designed by Daniel Libeskind and installed in the premises of the Royal Library, is situated close to the harbour. It is a reminder of the Jewish history of Denmark, but also of the escape of 7000 Jews through the Øresund in 1943, made possible by Danish fishermen, who had the courage to do this. I m looking forward to meeting you in Copenhagen! In particular I would like to express my gratitude to the members of the Board that engage in this enterprise Erika Perahia-Zemour (Thessaloniki), Łucja Koch (Warsaw), Joanne Rosenthal (London) Hanno Loewy President AEJM

5 Activities Advanced Curatorial Education Programme The Advanced Curatorial Education Programme (A-CEP) is a joint programme initiative of the AEJM and the Jewish Museum Berlin. The programme offers structural learning in the field of Judaica and curatorial practice to a new generation of curators working at Jewish or with Jewish collections in Europe. Since 2014 a grant from the German Federal Foreign Office enables the AEJM to organize two intensive 5-day curatorial training sessions per year that offer both theoretical and practical learning through lectures, hands-on workshops and field trips. The programme is led by programme director Dr Felicitas Heimann-Jelinek, assisted by Dr Michaela Feurstein-Prasser and the AEJM. A-CEP London 2015 The first edition was hosted by the Jewish Museum London and organised in close cooperation with JML curator Joanne Rosenthal. An international group of twenty curators from thirteen European countries attended the seminar, which took place February. Lectures on Anglo-Jewish silver of the 17 th and 18 th century by former JML Director Edgar Samuel, on the Anglo-Jewish Historical Exhibition by Felicitas Heimann-Jelinek, and on the evolution of the JML Judaica Collection offered a theoretical starting point for the hands-on workshop, wherein the participants studied silver objects and wimples from the JML Judaica collection. Through a lecture by JML curator Elizabeth Selby and a hands-on workshop participants also learned about the JML Social History Collection. After a lecture by Ian Blair, senior archaeologist at the Museum of London Archaeology, on the excavation of a medieval London mikvah, the participants also analysed the presentation of the mikvah at the museum. At the Czech Memorial Scrolls Trust, where the group was welcomed by Evelyn and Ariel Friedlander, the participants could continue to research Torah binders and wimples originating from Bohemia and Moravia. Other excursions included a visit to the Victoria & Albert Museum and the Bevis Marks Synagogue. At the V&A the group was invited for a behind-the-scenes presentation of a 17 th century Sephardic Torah mantle that is planned to be part Overall the curatorial education programme gave great insight into the museum practice of the Jewish Museum London, provided the opportunity for exchange with colleagues and lastly enabled me to look at our own collection with a better understanding. Sara Tas Junior curator of the Jewish Historical Museum in Amsterdam of the permanent exhibition of the museum. The tour of the Bevis Marks Synagogue, the oldest synagogue in the United Kingdom, by curator Maurice Bitton gave further insight into the Sephardic heritage in London. Annual Report

6 Activities A-CEP at the Jewish Museum London Ian Lillicrapp - JML A-CEP at the Hungarian Jewish Museum & Archives A-CEP Budapest 2015 The second 2015 edition of the A-CEP took place in Budapest from 30 August to 3 September. The programme was hosted by the Hungarian Jewish Museum & Archives and organized in close cooperation with director Zsuzsanna Toronyi and her curatorial team. Sixteen curators from twelve European countries curators attended the seminar. A lecture on the history of the Hungarian Jewish Museum & Archives by director Zsuzsanna Toronyi offered a theoretical starting point for this seminar. Participants visited the permanent exhibition and the archives and analysed the Judaica presentation in the permanent exhibition. Lectures and workshops by Felicitas Heimann-Jelinek, Zsuzsanna Toronyi, Michaela Feurstein-Prasser, director of programmes of the Jewish Museum Berlin Cilly Kugelmann, and HJMA curator Anna Gabor focused [ ] during our Budapest workshops we had a chance to work on authentic Judaica items. This is of great value to art historians, because you can feel the object. It is the best way to know every detail of a thing and it is the best way to cognize its forms. I think that for me this part of our meeting in Budapest was the most valuable. Jakub Bendkowski, Curator of the Museum of the Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute Warsaw Annual Report

7 Activities A-CEP at the Hungarian Jewish Museum & Archives [ ] the day was dedicated to a workshop, dealing with analysing the Judaica items from the collections of the Hungarian Jewish Museum and Archives. For me it was the first experience of close work with Judaica silverware, and I found this workshop to be not only interesting, but also useful and applicable in my everyday work. The skills we gained to decipher the silver marks, to distinguish between regional styles of Judaica are the ones all the curators should possess. Ilya Lensky Director of the Museum,,Jews in Latvia Riga on the HJMA collections and on the use and presentation of Judaica objects, archival materials and manuscripts. William Gross lectured on the Viennese Silversmith Turinsky and his works in the collection of the Hungarian Jewish Museum. The group was welcomed at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences by Kinga Devenyi, Chief Librarian and Curator of the Arab Manuscripts, the Goldziher Collection and the Kaufmann Collection, to take a closer look at several manuscripts of the library. Together with Deputy Director of the Museum of Ethnography Zsuzsa Szarvast the participants visited the temporary exhibition Picking up the Pieces: Fragments of Rural Hungarian Jewish Culture. Participants also analysed Judaica objects at the Hungarian National Museum together with Erika Kiss, curator of the Modern Goldsmith Collection. Rudolf Klein, Professor of Architectural History of the Szent Istvan University, introduced the participants to the history of the Jewish Quarter of Budapest while visiting several synagogues, streets and other buildings in this area. Annual Report

8 Activities Museum Education Seminar The Museum Education Seminar is an intensive 5-day seminar that serves as an important platform for educators from Jewish in Europe. The MES aims to enhance and support professionalism in museum education at European Jewish. By offering training, networking and exchange possibilities for educators, the AEJM also aims to foster innovation and new cooperation in the field of museum education projects, policies and strategies. The MES is kindly supported by the David Berg Foundation (NY). together during the workshops on developing lesson plans for different age groups and about medieval history, the Holocaust and post-war history. MES Vienna 2015 This year s Museum Education Seminar took place from 11 until 15 October. The Jewish Museum Vienna hosted the programme, which was organised by AEJM Senior Project Manager Eva Koppen in close cooperation with Hannah Landsmann and Dan Fischman of the JMW Education Department and in consultation with the Bratislava Jewish Community Museum and the Museum of Jewish Culture, branch of the Slovak National Museum. Fourteen educators from twelve different European countries attended the 5-day seminar. During the seminar the participants worked on different locations in and outside Vienna. This included the Jewish Museum Vienna with a visit to the core exhibition Our City! Jewish Vienna Then and Now, Museum Judenplatz and the Stadttempel synagogue. After kicking off with five-minute presentations on museum objects and presentations of recent education projects, the participants worked MES at the Jewish Museum Vienna Together they explored the JMW app Zwischen den Häusern (Between the Houses) on location in Vienna. Furthermore, there were plenary sessions where participants were given the opportunity to ask each other questions and share ideas and experiences related to a vast range of topics. Issues discussed included the use of Jewish religious objects as educational resources; how the arrival of refugees in Europe and the subsequent political and social reactions could impact the work as educators in Jewish ; development of lesson plans; and tour guide policies. Annual Report

9 Activities Workshop at the Essl Museum for Contemporary Art Klosterneuburg We had a very vivid exchange and I want to thank the AEJM so much for it they made us not only discover new sites and exhibitions, they gave us the opportunity to talk, to learn and to exchange about our educational work on a very high professional and international level. Grit Keller Educator at the Jewish Museum Berlin The participants also crossed the Austro-Slovak border. In Bratislava the participants were welcomed at the Bratislava Jewish Community Museum by director Dr Maros Borsky and educators Lucia Hidvegyova Monika Vrzgulova. They also visited the Museum of Jewish Culture, branch of the Slovak National Museum, where they were welcomed and guided through the museum by educator Stanislava Sikulova. The excursion ended with a visit to the Holocaust Memorial and the Chatam Sofer Memorial. As Jewish increasingly tend to organise and display exhibitions on modern and contemporary art, the final workshop at the Essl Museum for Contemporary Art in Klosterneuburg explored what can be learned from art education and how aspects could be implemented in education practice at Jewish. Annual Report

10 Activities Annual Conference The AEJM Annual Conference is one of the key events of the AEJM. It offers important opportunities for exchanging information and discussion of common challenges. The Conference thus provides a framework for international networking, collaboration and communication amongst Jewish in Europe. Through this the AEJM aims to foster collaborative projects and a productive exchange of ideas and expertise, as well as to assist each individual member in achieving a high quality of performance in serving the wider public. Jerusalem 2015 The AEJM Annual Conference 2015 took place from 14 until 17 November at The Israel Museum in Jerusalem and was organised in close cooperation with the Wing for Jewish Art and Life of The Israel Museum. The topic of this edition was The Self and the Other Jewish Museums Dealing With Notions Of Diversity. More than 100 delegates from different countries participated in lectures, panel discussions, and workshops. This year s keynote speaker was Avraham Burg, author and former speaker of the Knesset. His lecture, What is this Jerusalem? Reality or Museum What are its Boundaries Who is in and Who is out?, provided a contextual backdrop for this conference and for further discussions. The conference topic was further explored by the panel discussions (Re) Presenting Cultural Diversities with the curatorial team of the IMJ and How Do Jewish Museums Deal With Notions of Diversity with Cilly Kugelmann (Jewish Museum Berlin), Reesa Greenberg (Carleton University Ottawa), Tali Gavish (Ruth Youth Wing for Art Education, IMJ) and Raphie Etgar (Museum on the Seam). Workshops at the Annual Conference Israel Museum The Exhibitions Marketplace offered insight into the diversity of temporary exhibition projects at different European Jewish. In various workshops at the Israel Museum and the National Library of Israel, delegates explored and discussed curatorial practice, provenance research, museum education and digitisation. Annual Report

11 association Activities Excursion to the Museum of Babylonian Jewry, Or Yehuda As an employee of a small Jewish museum, it is of particular importance to me to be regularly informed about new developments in the Jewish world, in regard to new general museum concepts, pioneering core or temporary exhibition concepts and educational projects. In this context, the conference programme achieved also this year to offer a quick, but nevertheless thorough insight into actual developments of Jewish, giving in such a way new impulses and inspiration for new exhibition design and concepts in our own. international level. The U. Nahon Museum of Italian Art and the National Library of Israel each hosted an evening reception, respectively with museum tours and with a lecture by Prof. Moshe Rosman. Other excursions brought the group to Yemin Moshe and the renewed Ticho House and a city tour in Haneviim Street surroundings. Both in advance and after the programme optional excursions were offered. Emily Bilski led an artists studio tour, meeting with the painter Meir Appelfeld and with the conceptual artist Andi Arnovitz. On the 18th after the conference had officially ended, two optional excursions were offered. Delegates could choose between a special visit to Yad Vashem or an excursion to the Babylonian Jewry Museum, the Museum of Libyan Jews and the William Gross Private Collection. Christina Meri Curator of the Jewish Museum of Greece Athens Annual Report

12 Grants Advisory Visits Grant Programme Through the Advisory Visits Grant Programme (AVGP) the AEJM offers custom-made consultancy visits by museum experts to member institutions in need of expert advice and training. The Advisory Visits Grant Programme offers AEJM members professional support, expert advice and in-house training. They focus especially on issues that are unique or particularly relevant for Jewish. Improving professionalization of Jewish in Europe and connecting sources of knowledge between these are the guiding principles for this grant programme. The AVGP is open for applications in three categories: Permanent Displays focus on the development of exhibition concepts for permanent displays Collection Management Grants in 2015 Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute Collection Management Irish Jewish Museum (awarded in 2014) Collection Management focus on the identification, preservation, conservation and interpretation of Judaica or other items relating to Jewish life and history, as well as measures that make museum collections more accessible, such as inventories, cataloguing, and digitisation programmes that aim at long-term sustainability Museum Education focus on the development of educational programmes and displays for young target groups Jewish Museum of Belgium Permanent Displays Jewish Museum Trondheim Collection Management Manchester Jewish Museum (to be implemented in 2016) Permanent Displays The AVGP is supported by the Rothschild Foundation (Hanadiv) Europe. In 2015 the AEJM was able to increase the number of grants from three ( ) to four. Annual Report

13 Grants Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute The Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute (ŻIH) in Warsaw was granted an expert visit in the category of Collection Management to advise on the identification and interpretation of its Judaica collection, as well as on issues related to provenance research. The ŻIH works on new catalogue descriptions of its Judaica collection and aims at resolving problematic descriptions and attributions before transferring the data into a digital database. In June 2015 Dr Felicitas Heimann-Jelinek undertook a 3.5-day visit to Warsaw to consult on the collection. Through the advisory visit the ŻIH did not only receive practical advise on its revision of the inventory descriptions, but it also enabled the ŻIH to identify important challenges for the upcoming years, especially in the field of provenance research and restitution of Judaica, as well as restoration. Dr Felicitas Heimann-Jelinek is a very knowledgeable person in the area of Jewish religious objects. She has been of much help to us in the ideas of organising the collection and controlling our data. She has noticed some specific aspects of the ŻIH collection of Judaica. First of all, most of the objects come from German storages and camps. 80% of the objects were given to ŻIH in 1940s and 1950s by the Ministry of Culture. This means that there has not been any rational or aesthetic factor in the building of our collection. We have no knowledge about pre-war owners of these Judaica objects. We are working on provenance research and it is important for us to consult our results with specialists. Teresa Smiechowska Head of the Museum of the ŻIH Annual Report

14 Grants Irish Jewish Museum Dr Wachten has given information on a number of books in his Report and his advice on the future recording and cataloguing of the books will be taken on board on completion of the Book Project. Without the assistance of Dr Wachten this work would not have been possible. Carol Briscoe Chair Archive & Conservation Committee Irish Jewish Museum In 2014 the Irish Jewish Museum in Dublin (IMJ) had been granted an expert visit in the category of Collection Management to advise on the book collection of the museum. A grant from the Irish Heritage Council enabled the museum to implement the two-stage Book Project with this collection: first a survey, followed by archiving, restoring and conserving the collecting. Advice was requested on the identification of the Jewish book collection, the relevance of the items (including de-accessioning of items) and on the documentation of items for record purposes. Dr Johannes Wachten undertook an advisory visit to Dublin in February After the advisory visit the IMJ employed an archivist to complete the recordings of the books in English as part of the first phase of the Book Project funded by the Irish Heritage Council. The IJM intends to finish a comprehensive catalogue of its book collection at the end of the second phase of the project. The museum further aims at conserving and storing the handwritten materials found amongst the books with the museum s document collection. Annual Report

15 Grants Jewish Museum of Belgium The Jewish Museum of Belgium in Brussels was granted an expert visit in the category of Permanent Displays to advise the development of a new core exhibition. As the JMB is currently facing a major renewal project, including a new museum building, the museum requested an advisory visit to bring in an outsider s point of view to discuss the content, technical and practical aspects of the museum s future displays. The AEJM facilitated a 2-day expert meeting in May with Prof. Barbara Kirshenblatt- Gimblett, Chief Curator of the core exhibition of POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews, Hetty Berg, Chief Curator of the Jewish Historical Museum in Amsterdam, and Dr Sabine Koessling, Curator Modern History and Project Leader Core Exhibition Renewal at the Jewish Museum Frankfurt. At their respective these experts have been or are currently involved in overseeing major permanent exhibition renewal projects. The curatorial expert meeting offered fresh input, as well as challenging questions and key issues whereupon the JMB should reflect in the near future. The visit was extremely refreshing and energizing for the JMB team. All staff members involved were enthusiasts and grateful to the experts for their inspiring and provocative thoughts. It was a unique opportunity to discuss our project with experts in the field. [ ] This meeting provides us with many inputs, fresh ideas and suggestions, experience of best practices and mistakes made in other. Pascale Falek-Alhadeff Curator at the Jewish Museum of Belgium Annual Report

16 Grants Jewish Museum Trondheim After the advisory visit made by Bernhard Purin in September, the museum has now been able to see how one should tackle the immense work that has to be done with regard to the collection, but also the new exhibition. The work that has to be done, will take time, as the museum still has not got a curator. However, Bernhard Purin has given us the tools on how to continue the work, and be able to gain deeper knowledge of our collection, but also how to preserve it for the future. Lise Rebekka Paltiel Project Manager and Educator at the Jewish Museum Trondheim The Jewish Museum Trondheim (JMT) was granted an expert visit in the category of Collection Management to advise on the identification and interpretation of its Judaica collection, since such expertise is not available in Norway. Bernhard Purin, Director of the Jewish Museum Munich, undertook a 3-day visit to Trondheim in September In addition to the identification and interpretation of the objects, he also advised on storing textile objects and on restoring specific artefacts. This expert visit also offered the opportunity to advise on the renewal of the permanent WWII exhibition, which the JMT considers out-dated. In addition to Bernhard Purin, Jon Reitan, Deputy Director of The Falstad Centre, was invited to an expert meeting on the WWII exhibition renewal. The JMT considers the information gathered at the advisory visit a stepping-stone towards further research. The considers saving the information on the Judaica collection in the Norwegian museum database Primus as one of its long-term goals. This would make the data available to both researchers and the general public interested in Trondheim and Norwegian Jewish history and cultural heritage. Annual Report

17 Grants Manchester Jewish Museum The Manchester Jewish Museum (MJM) was granted an expert visit in the category of Permanent Displays to advise the development of a new core exhibition. The MJM has received funding for a major museum renewal and is currently developing its plans for a new purpose-built museum space. Cilly Kugelmann, Programme Director of the Jewish Museum Berlin, will undertake an advisory visit to Manchester in February The advisory visit will aim to provide feedback on the museum s plans for the new galleries and give insight into current trends in display methods. Kugelmann will also advise on the interpretation of MJM s collection and how to make it relevant to its target audiences. Annual Report

18 Grants A-CEP Travel Grants Participants of the AEJM Advanced Curatorial Education Programme may apply to the AEJM for an A-CEP Travel Grant to partly cover expenses for travel and accommodation. The AEJM prioritises member institutions that do not have sufficient financial means to send one delegate. Only member institutions that have paid their membership fees are eligible to apply. In 2015 the A-CEP Travel Grants were funded by the Rothschild Foundation (Hanadiv) Europe and the German Federal Foreign Office. A-CEP at the Jewish Museum London Ian Lillicrapp - JML AEJM Grantees Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute PL London, Budapest Jewish Culture Museum Augsburg-Swabia DE London Jewish Historical Museum Amsterdam NL London, Budapest Jewish Museum Hohenems AT London, Budapest Jewish Museum London UK Budapest Jewish Museum of Greece GR London Jewish Museum of Switzerland CH London Jewish Museum of Turkey TU London Jewish Museum Rome IT Budapest Jewish Museum SchPIRA DE London Jewish Museum Vienna AT London Manchester Jewish Museum UK London Museum Jews in Latvia LV London, Budapest POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews PL London, Budapest Vilna Gaon State Jewish Museum LT London Special Grantees Georgian National Museum GE Budapest Dr Daniela Schmid - Judaica Researcher AT Budapest Annual Report

19 Grants MES Travel Grants Conference Travel Grants Participants of the AEJM Museum Education Seminar may apply to the AEJM for a MES Travel Grant to partly cover expenses for travel and accommodation. The AEJM prioritises member institutions that do not have sufficient financial means to send one delegate. Only member institutions that have paid their membership fees are eligible to apply. The 2015 MES Travel Grants were supported by the David Berg Foundation, NY. Grantees Auschwitz Jewish Center PL Bratislava Jewish Community Museum SK Center of Jewish Cultural Heritage Synagogue Maribor SI Hungarian Jewish Museum & Archives HU Jewish Museum Berlin DE Jewish Museum Frankfurt DE Jewish Museum in Stockholm SE Jewish Museum London UK Jewish Museum of Switzerland CH Jewish Museum Oslo NO Jewish Museum Trondheim NO Museum Jews in Latvia LV POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews PL Vilna Gaon State Jewish Museum LT Participants of the AEJM Annual Conference may apply to the AEJM for a Conference Travel Grant to partly cover expenses for travel and accommodation. The AEJM prioritises member institutions that do not have sufficient financial means to participate in the Conference. Only member institutions that have paid their membership fees are considered eligible to apply. Non-member institutions - Jewish or non-jewish with a significant Jewish collection with limited financial means that intend to apply for AEJM membership within one year are also eligible for Conference Travel Grants. The 2015 Conference Travel Grants were funded by the Rothschild Foundation (Hanadiv) Europe. Grantees Georgian National Museum GE Jewish Museum of Greece GR Vilna Gaon State Jewish Museum LT Annual Report

20 Cooperation Cooperation Advanced Curatorial Education Programme Jewish Museum London Hosting venue and various workshops on the JML Judaica and social history collections, by curators Joanne Rosenthal and Elizabeth Selby Czech Memorial Scrolls Trust London Workshop on 17 th century ceremonial objects, including selected Bohemian and Moravian wimples and Torah binders and curatorial tour by Evelyn Friedlander and rabbi Ariel Friedlander Victoria & Albert Museum London Presentation of a 17 th century Sephardic Torah mantle and discussion session with curatorial staff Bevis Marks Synagogue London Curatorial tour of the synagogue with Maurice Bitton Museum of London Archaeology Lecture on the excavation of the London mikvah, by Ian Blair, sr. archaeologist of the museum Hungarian Jewish Museum & Archives Budapest Hosting venue and various workshops on the HJM Judaica, paper and archival collections, by director Dr Zsuzsanna Toronyi and curator Anna Gabor Hungarian National Museum Budapest Presentation of Judaica in the Modern Goldsmith Collection and discussion, with Dr Erika Kiss, curator of the Modern Goldsmith Collection at the HNM A-CEP at the Jewish Museum London Ian Lillicrapp - JML Hungarian Academy of Sciences Budapest Workshop on Hebrew manuscripts in the Kaufmann Collection, by Dr Kinga Dévényi, chief librarian and curator of Arab manuscripts, the Goldhizer Collection and the Kaufmann Collection at the HAS Museum of Ethnography Budapest Curatorial tour of the temporary exhibition Picking Up The Pieces: Fragments of Hungarian Jewish Culture, by Zsuzsanna Szarvas, deputy director of the Museum of Ethnography Prof. Rudolf Klein Architectural tour of the Jewish Quarter of Budapest Dr Cilly Kugelmann Lecture on the use of archival materials in the context of William Gross Lecture and workshop on the Viennese silversmith Turinsky and his works in the collection of the Hungarian Jewish Museum & Archives Annual Report

21 Cooperation Museum Education Seminar Jewish Museum Vienna Hosting venue and various workshops, by Hannah Landsmann and Dan Fischman of the Education Department Bratislava Jewish Community Museum Curatorial tours and discussion, by director Dr Maros Borsky and educators Dr Monika Vrzegulová and Dr Lucia Hidvéghyová Museum of Jewish Culture branch of the Slovak National Museum Curatorial tour by educator Stanislava Šikulová erinnern.at Panel discussion Who Does History Belong To And Who Recounts It?, panellist Dr Werner Dreier, executive director erinnern.at Mauthausen Memorial Archives Panel discussion Who Does History Belong To And Who Recounts It?, panellist Dr Christian Dürr, head of the MMA Essl Museum of Contemporary Art in Klosterneuburg Workshop on art education, by Resi Moritz and Mela Maresch of the Education Department Annual Conference The Israel Museum Jerusalem Hosting venue, various tours, workshops and facilities as coordinated by Daisy Raccah-Djivre and Miki Joelson of the Wing of Jewish Art and Life U. Nahon Museum of Italian Jewish Art & Life Jerusalem Curatorial tours and evening reception Museum of Libyan Jews Or Yehuda Curatorial tour and lunch reception William Gross Ramat Aviv Lecture and curatorial tour of the Gross Private Collection The Babylonian Jewry Museum Or Yehuda Curatorial tours Museum on the Seam Jerusalem Panel discussion How Do Jewish Museums Deal With Notions Of Diversity?, panellist Raphie Etgar, artistic director and curator National Library of Israel Jerusalem Workshop Digitization: Creating Impact and Engagement and evening reception, coordinated by Caron Sethill Yad Vashem Jerusalem Excursion with curatorial introduction by Eliad Moreh-Rosenberg, curator and director of the art department, Museum Division Avraham Burg Jerusalem Keynote Lecture What is this Jerusalem? Reality or Museum - What are its Boundaries - Who is in and Who is out? Annual Conference at the Israel Museum Emily Bilski Jerusalem Artists Studio Tour, including meetings with painter Meir Appelfeld and conceptual artist Andi Arnovitz Annual Report

22 Cooperation & Committees Committees Survey of Jewish Museums in Europe In 2015 the Rothschild Foundation (Hanadiv) Europe initiated a comprehensive survey of Jewish in Europe, which has been conducted in cooperation with the Association of European Jewish Museums (AEJM). The survey, coordinated by Dr Brigitte Sion, aims at getting a broad overview of the current state of affairs at Jewish museum all over Europe and identifying their needs in various fields, such as collections, exhibitions, technology, education, and marketing. A detailed report based on this survey results will be published in Council of American Jewish Museums The AEJM and the CAJM aim at informing their respective members on recent developments at Jewish at their conferences. At the AEJM Annual Conference the CAJM was represented by Gabriel Goldstein to report on recent CAJM activities and developments in the field of Jewish in the United States and Canada. Museum Education Task Force The Museum Education Task Force (METF) is an advisory committee for AEJM s activities in the field of museum education, such as the Museum Education Seminar (MES) and the Advisory Visits Grant Programme (AVGP). In 2015 the Museum Education Task Force consisted of: Łucja Koch POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews Poland Elisabeth Schulte Jewish Museum Munich Germany Financial Audit Committee The Financial Audit Committee (FAC) is responsible for auditing the Financial Report of the AEJM. The FAC gathered during the Annual Conference in Jerusalem (14-17 November, 2015). In 2015 the Financial Audit Committee consisted of: Edwin Alkin Irish Jewish Museum Dublin William Gross Individual Associate Member Israel stepped down November 17, 2015 Dr Otto Lohr Bavarian Museum Service Germany elected November 17, 2015 Annual Report

23 New Members & Communication NEW MEMBERS In 2015 the following institutions joined the AEJM. Individual Associate Members Center Petersburg Judaica Saint Petersburg Russian Federation Center of Jewish Cultural Heritage Synagogue Maribor Slovenia Honorary Members Katia Guth-Dreyfuss former founding director of the Jewish Museum of Switzerland in Basel Communication Newsletter The AEJM Newsletter is a bulletin that contains announcements and reports on AEJM activities, relevant information on member institutions, grant programmes, and publications. The Newsletter is published online and is sent to members and the mailing list of non-members. While the newsletter has previously been quarterly, five editions of the newsletter were issued in According to plan, the newsletter will be published bimonthly in Website Among the content available on the webpage, users will find information about the AEJM and its activities: upcoming professional development seminars and conference (now with online registration); archive of reports from former seminars and conferences; grant programmes; and a newsletter archive. It also provides extensive information about each of AEJM s member institutions. The new website serves as a community platform, facilitating professional discussion and exchange. The page s interactive features are only accessible to employees of AEJM member institutions, and access is manually approved by the Community Manager. Once logged in, the users are able to submit a variety of content to the webpage: updates to their museum profiles; job opportunities; news items; upcoming or ongoing exhibitions; and projects for exchange, such as travelling exhibits or collaborative educational initiatives. Thanks to this interactivity, the webpage becomes more dynamic and provides more varied content. It also allows members to interact more actively with the AEJM and with other member institutions, as well as staying updated on current activities in Jewish Museums across Europe. Furthering the effort to provide an interactive space for Jewish museum professionals to engage and exchange, the webpage hosts two closed discussion forums, only open to educators and curators, respectively. In these forums, participants will be able to discuss topics relating to the professional development seminars, as well as ask questions and share experiences related to their work as museum professionals. Annual Report

24 Supporters SUPPORTERS The Rothschild Foundation (Hanadiv) Europe supported the AEJM and the AEJM Advisory Visits Grant Programme. The David Berg Foundation, New York, supported the AEJM Museum Education Seminar 2015 in Vienna. The German Federal Foreign Office supported the AEJM Advanced Curatorial Education Programmes 2015 in London and Budapest. Annual Report

25 Financial report Financial report Income Membership fees ,50 David Berg Foundation ,00 German Federal Foreign Office 3.646,56 Rothschild Foundation ,00 Excursion fees Conference 550,00 TOTAL INCOME ,06 Expenditures Administration Costs Banking 263,83 Financial Report 631,25 Stafffing Fee Senior Project Manager ,00 & Board Office costs SPM 1.200,00 Travel costs SPM 5.343,68 Fee Community Manager 9.050,00 Office costs CM 250,00 Travel costs CM 2.884,48 Travel costs Board & Task Force 4.133,27 Training Programmes A CEP A-CEP Travel Grants 6.875,00 Fees & travel costs Tutors 944,06 Programme costs 462,20 MES MES Travel Grants 3.700,00 Fees & travel costs Tutors 519,60 Programme costs 1.419,80 Conference Conference Travel grants 1.500,00 Fees & travel costs Tutors & Lecturers 1.598,47 Programme costs 1.393,86 Advisory Visits Grant Programme Fees & travel costs experts Grant Programme 5.219,35 Website Hosting 1.213,77 Development 4.199,31 TOTAL EXPENDITURES ,93 NEP SURPLUS/DEFICIT 4.613,13 Annual Report

26 Board & Staff Board &Staff President Hanno Loewy Director of the Jewish Museum Hohenems Austria Vice-President Erika Perahia-Zemour Executive Secretary of the Jewish Museum of Thessaloniki Greece Treasurer Bernhard Purin Director of the Jewish Museum Munich Germany Secretary Joanne Rosenthal Exhibitions and Projects Curator at the Jewish Museum London England Board Member Łucja Koch Manager of the Education Department Museum of the POLIN History of Polish Jews in Warsaw Poland Senior Project Manager Eva Koppen Amsterdam the Netherlands Community Manager Ardjuna Candotti Amsterdam the Netherlands Project Assistant Website Development Roosmarij Deenik Amsterdam the Netherlands A-CEP Programme Director Felicitas Heimann-Jelinek Vienna Austria A-CEP Programme Assistant Michaela Feurstein-Prasser Vienna Austria Colophon Content Association of European Jewish Museums Editing Anita Christensen and Eva Koppen Association of European Jewish Museums c/o Eva Koppen Jewish Historical Museum P.O. Box RE Amsterdam The Netherlands Annual Report

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