WHAT EVEN IS JEWISH ART? MARC CHAGALL AND THE ÉCOLE DE PARIS AT mahJ (PART 2)

 Musings Abroad | Molly Gosewich

WHAT EVEN IS JEWISH ART? MARC CHAGALL AND THE ÉCOLE DE PARIS AT mahJ (PART 1)

Musings Abroad | Molly Gosewich

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How long has it been since the world effectively shut down? As restrictions loosen (and I say that loosely), jabs administered, and life begins to show some signs of normalcy, I cannot be the only one who has been plotting (more like pining for) their return across the Atlantic. 

For Musings Abroad, continuing this year, I’ll continue to spotlight the goings-on of international museums/galleries with a deeper dive into specific exhibition topics, and to hopefully provide some travel inspiration for when we can step foot inside international museums again.

To start us off, we have the mahJ – formally known as the Musée d’Art et d’Histoire du Judaïsme (Museum of the Art and History of Judaism) – which I was fortunate enough to visit back in 2019. 

Photo courtesy of the author (2019)

Located in the Marais District, once the Jewish hub of Paris, the mahJ is home to the largest collection of Jewish art and antiquity in France – documenting the rich history and culture of Jews across Europe and North Africa, from the Middle Ages to the 20th century. Among other stunning Judaic objects, archival manuscripts, and works of art, the mahJ’s collection includes pieces by the legendary Marc Chagall and Amedeo Modigliani, which are conveniently on display until October 31 in an exhibition focusing solely on Jewish artists within the “École de Paris” (School of Paris). The term coined sometime before 1925, was in fact tinged with antisemitism, due to the tendency to lump foreigners together in this way (Fayard, 2001). Many Jewish émigré artists from major European cities and the Russian Empire (plus Asia and Africa) belonged to the cosmopolitan generation of the School of Paris (or Paris School), one without a common style but with a shared desire for freedom amid pogroms and creative internment (see Entartete Kunst for how art was stifled under the Nazi regime). As we know, Paris was the artistic epicentre of Europe — from La Ruche (“The Hive”) building or on Cité Falguière, in the streets near the Boulevard Raspail to the cafés of Montparnasse. 

La Ruche et Montparnasse

                                                                        Marc Chagall

Sotheby’s posits that the School of Paris first appeared at the turn of the century and ended roughly after the conclusion of World War II. However, this “school” was completely abstract, including luminaries associated with several assorted avant-garde movements (such as les Nabis or Fauvism, Cubism, and Surrealism). Because of the diversity of abstract genres part of the School of Paris, it begs the question: what is Jewish art? 

Of course, there are many other Jewish artists within the Paris School (Jules Pascin, Otto Freundlich, and Chana Orloff to name a few) that are captivating in their own right. But, especially to me, as a student in the Jewish Studies Collaborative Specialization, Marc Chagall is of a particular interest to me. Why you may ask? His artistic archive and legacy is deeply imbued with Jewish signifiers and signals a certain collective memory.

A prominent figure in the School of Paris, the Jewish artist Marc Chagall had lived in the city from 1910 to 1914, and quickly absorbed many of the stylistic influences of the avant-garde working in the French capital. Chagall’s “Bride with Fan” of 1911 is simply enchanting and is indicative of the very delight and radiance typical of his work at this time. Naturally, he became a leading artist of the School of Paris during this time and after his exile from Russia in 1923. In the School of Paris, around 200 artists, most of them being foreigners, had occupied La Ruche at the beginning of the twentieth century. It was a legendary building in the Passage de Dantzig where Yiddish (the language of the Central and Eastern Ashkenazi Jews) reigned supreme. 

When Marc Chagall arrived in Paris, he settled there with sculptor Zadkine and artists Michel Kikoine and Chaïm Soutine. It is said that Soutine, the native of a small village in Belarus, knew only Yiddish and it was in La Ruche that he learned a few new words in Russian, perhaps in conversation with Chagall (Levin, 2021). Essentially, there was an obvious Jewish influence on a movement that encompassed many Jewish artists, though not calling itself outright a "Jewish" School of Art. Below you will be two of Chagall's paintings, one of a praying man and one of a shtetl, which both evoke a collective Jewish memory that would have been understood by the Yiddish speakers in the movement.

                                                                  Source: artsy.com

To understand the full extent of Chagall’s contribution and participation in the School of Paris scene, and his contribution to Jewish art — we have to look back into his earlier days, before he became (to many) one of the greats of art — that'll come in Part 2.

IN THE DARKROOM: EXPLORING TOM OF FINLAND'S ENDURING INFLUENCE

Musings Abroad | Molly Gosewich

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"Whenever I was depressed or disgusted, I would feel him, that spirit inside, urging me back to living, back to drawing, I believe there is a lot to the world that can’t be seen or touched, and if you turn away from that — especially if you are an artist — you are avoiding an important part of life, maybe the very heart of it.” - Tom of Finland

Tom of Finland aka Touko Laaksonen 
Collage credit to Worldcrunch. Photo source.

Museums, be it local or international, are considered the arbiters of culture, keepers of history, and especially systems of representation. As an extension of such, exhibitions have become increasingly important to engage with many existing intersections of identity and to, in good faith, seek to advance conversations surrounding LGBTQ2+ iconography and representation in particular.

Fotografiska

My first grasp with queerness in the field of Museum Studies was with persons, both historical and contemporary: theorists like Judith Butler and artists such as Keith Haring, Mickalene Thomas, Catherine Opie, and my personal favourite, bisexual painter Tamara de Lempicka (I have a tattoo inspired by her work). The ArQuives, which was established to aid in the recovery and preservation of Canadian LGBTQ2+ histories, has also been a key window into queer museological knowledge, agency, and identities.

However, an artist I’ve always found to be equal parts seductive and intriguing throughout my experience as a Master of Museum Studies student is Tom of Finland (born Touko Laaksonen, 1920-1991). Though fairly characterized as graphic, provocative, and pornographic through his tangible association with kink and eroticism, his work is a refreshing reprieve from the puritanical Western art often kept by mainstream museums. Highly stylized and recognizable by muscled bodies, bulging appendages, leather fetish gear, and uniforms inspired by blue-collar workers and military men, Tom of Finland occupies a distinct, subversive space in the queer visual culture canon.

As someone with both an academic and personal interest in portraiture, I was even more enthralled with The Darkroom, a current exhibition (located in New York City, from April 30-August 20, 2021) that serves as an intimate look into the prolific artistry of Tom of Finland, curated by Berndt Arell of Fotografiska in collaboration with the Tom of Finland Foundation. As Pride 2021 celebrations looked a little different this year, The Darkroom is a fascinating way to engage with Tom of Finland’s 100 year legacy of queer art and never-before-seen, boundary-pushing, sexually powerful, homoerotic photographic portraits that served as references for his drawings.

Oppressed by the persecution of queerness in his native Finland, Laaksonen clandestinely photographed his muses/models as references for his drawings. They were kept under the cover of darkness and would become highly-coveted works in underground gay subcultures and communities. With the increasing openness found in the West, he would spend time in Los Angeles, where both freedom and his art were able to flourish. There, he would draw inspiration from American bodybuilding and develop a burgeoning interest in depicting Black men (some of his later illustrations would feature Black men and interracial sex scenes). This inclusion is doubly interesting, if not slightly problematic: Laaksonen had the general tendency to depict cis, white men, and more and more academics have touched on the hypermasculinization/hypersexualization and presence of Black men in visual culture. Though, it can be noted that, to some, he had helped to increase the visibility of "black gay male subjectivity" towards the culmination of the 20th century, the end of his career, to which critics characterize this period as his most overtly political. With Tom of Finland, all men were created equal.

Untitled, 1989. From Tom of Finland Foundation

Untitled, 1984 (Val Martin); Untitled, 1986, Untitled, 1986 (above), Untitled, 1986 (below).

Tom of Finland Permanent Collection

A statement from exhibition producer Jessica Jarl says, “To Fotografiska, this is a brilliant example of how photography – besides standing on its own – often plays a part in many different kinds of creating. The story of The Darkroom – the first art exhibition where Tom of Finland's photographs are also being shown – is in many ways a journey through time. From dark hidden rooms or parks, to open, well-lit salons. In some places, strong forces are now pushing this art – and the lifestyles it reflects – back into the darkness. One more reason to lift the importance of free art. And it feels right to have Tom's voice be heard.”

The very premise of this exhibition is born out of the sexually repressive environment of 1950s Finland. Laaksonen set up a darkroom in a closet of his home in Helsinki to develop the photographs he took. Not only racy and homoerotic, they were outlawed. The Darkroom displays his portraits on black walls with red accents; they are the star of the show, featuring hyper-masculine hunks, clad in uniforms or leather gear, all distended muscles and members. They act to fearlessly confront a system that even today continues to deny freedoms, legality, and basic rights to queer, gay, and trans communities — bringing to light the current relevancy of their struggle for liberation. 

Tom of Finland: 'The Darkroom'
Wallpaper

Even during the height of the AIDS crisis, Laaksonen continued to create positive images of gay culture, and in 1987, made a now-famous drawing encouraging the practice of safe sex. The title of the exhibition The Darkroom just feels so apt. To end off, here is a quote by longtime Whitney Museum curator Richard D. Marshall (Quoted in Ferguson, 2019) that illustrates the impact and significance of not only Tom of Finland's work, but also of the very concept of The Darkroom:

“Tom of Finland emerged in the 1950s to deliver us from the repressive, fearful, and disguised sexuality of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Tom made the idealized male beauty of the Greek gods become contemporary, real living gods, with no judgmental distinction between active and passive sexual roles. Tom made the artificial Roman breastplate into lively skin and muscle; Tom made Christian sado-masochism positive, desirable, and enviable; Tom made Michelangelo’s saints naked and aggressive; Tom brought honest, ribald, consensual, enjoyable, and delirious male sexuality back into twentieth century art. (1997, p. 252)”

Suffice to say, as travel restrictions begin to lessen, I recommend visiting this exhibition if you’re interested in studies and imagery of sex positivity, masculinity, countering heteronormativity, queer culture, and unapologetic art. If you find yourself in New York City, go see for yourself.

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Sources Referenced and Further Reading

Alan Sinfield (2004). On Sexuality and Power. Columbia University Press, https://doi.org/10.7312/sinf13408.

Leena-Maija Rossi (2019). From arousing drawings to art to behold: Tom of Finland’s long and winding road to the art world, Porn Studies, 6:4, 459-463, DOI: 10.1080/23268743.2019.1580450

Michael Ferguson (2019) Tom of Finland, Journal of Homosexuality, 66:6, 857-862, DOI: 10.1080/00918369.2018.1514206

Nicholas Boston (2021). The Photography of Tom of Finland. Gay City News, https://www.gaycitynews.com/tom-of-finland-photography-art/.

Thomson Reuters Institute (2020). Out of the Shadows: Remembering ‘Tom of Finland,’

https://www.thomsonreuters.com/en-us/posts/legal/tom-of-finland/.

WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH: WOMEN'S MUSEUM FAR FROM HOME

Musings Abroad | Jingshu Helen Yao

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During March 2018, in honor of women’s history month, Musings editor Kristen Mclaughlin wrote an article showcasing museums around the world that celebrate International Women’s Day (IWD). Mclaughlin’s article focused on museums in the UK, Italy, and Australia, because it was difficult to find any information on celebrating IWD in museums of nonwestern countries. Though more than 80 countries officially recognize IWD, their celebration may not be immediately available to us due to the language and information barrier. Three years later, in 2021, I would like to take a look outside the western lenses and introduce three more museums that focus on women’s history.

Vietnam Women’s Museum, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi, Vietnam

Exhibition at The Vietnam Women’s Museum|Vietnam Travel

The Vietnam Women’s Museum was founded in 1987 by the Vietnam Women’s Union. Since then the museum has dedicated itself to public education on the history and cultural heritage of Vietnamese women. The museum is also a centre for promoting, encouraging, and inspiring the work of culture preservation, knowledge exchange, as well as gender equality. The exhibitions in the museum include “Women in Family,” “Women in History,” and “Women’s Fashion.” Its temporary exhibitions shed light on women in different fields and aspects of society, for example, female entrepreneurs were featured in “Start-up Journey” and efforts of environmental activists are honored in a photography display titled “I Live Green.” Other exhibitions also focused on domestic violence (“Smiling Tears”), migrant women (“Shining Night”), single mothers (“Single Mothers’ Voices”), and human trafficking (“Peaceful Place”). The various topics are not only a learning opportunity to understand women’s history in Vietnam, but also point out the urgent issues that need to be addressed for women’s equality.

Exhibition at The Vietnam Women’s Museum|Vietnam Travel

Women's Museum Istanbul, Istanbul, Turkey

Women's Museum Istanbul is a relatively new museum, established in 2011. Though the museum doesn’t have as many exhibitions as traditional museums, the online archive is a great resource for historical learning and research. The permanent online exhibition is an archive of all the “first” women in Istanbul’s history who contribute to the culture and art of the city. The archive traces back to as early as the 11th century and is organized alphabetically, chronologically, and thematically. The museum is also making an effort to improve education on the “HERstory” of Istanbul in schools by organizing teachers’ programs. It also offers funds and support for research in women’s history.

Online Exhibition at Women’s Museum Istanbul|Women's Museum Istanbul

The Women’s Museum at Bait Al Banat, Dubai - United Arab Emirates

The Women’s Museum at Bait Al Banat is located in a historical building called “The Girls’ House.” The museum’s vision is to document women’s life in different historical and social contexts across the UAE, with a focus on women’s activism in arts, academia, business, culture, and politics. The current exhibition in Bait Al Banat's gallery is on Muneera al Mazrou, a distinguished marksman (or in this case marksperson) and photographer. The exhibition features her work as one of the first female photographers from Sharjah. “HERstory” is an exhibition on women’s design work and the conversation and connections between artists through their art. Bait Al Banat is also home to the Women’s Studies Centre which facilitates and supports further research on women’s history and empowerment.

Exhibition Poster | The Women’s Museum at Bait Al Banat

Exhibition IN Bait Al Banat Gallery | The Women’s Museum at Bait Al Banat

BLACK CULINARY CULTURE IN MUSEUMS AROUND THE WORLD

  Musings Abroad | Jingshu Helen Yao

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February is Black History Month. As a member outside of this community, I looked into different approaches to learn about black histories and cultures. Food is often a window to look into the relationship within or between communities.

 

Soul Food |iStock

In a paper where researcher Camille Bégin discussed the changes in writing about black food culture, Bégin pointed out that early culinary descriptions were used to reinforce stereotypical views and racialize African American communities. The image of black mammy cooking, a racial caricature of African American women, became a comfort for many during the great depression. This image is not an accurate representation of African American women and in some ways represents a negative stereotype. Regardless, with industrialization and social change, African American food has become a major part of cuisine in the southern United States.

Suya | flickr

Though soul food is the most well-known representation of African American cuisine, black food culture goes far beyond that. The Museum of Food and Drinks (MOFAD) in New York City focused on the culinary history of African Americans when putting together the exhibition “African/American: Making the Nation's Table”. One of the exhibition’s highlights was the “Legacy Quilt”, a quilt that stands 14 feet tall, spans 30 feet wide, and contains 406 blocks, each devoted to an individual who contributed to African American cuisine. The Ebony Test Kitchen, which was located at the headquarters for Johnson Publishing Company, was used as the test kitchen for Ebony Magazine’s food column. MOFAD acquired the kitchen set and recreated it as a tribute to the innovation of Ebony Magazine, which was known for challenging stereotypes and contributing to the evolution of African American cuisine. In addition to these objects, “African/American: Making the Nation's Table” featured a unique taste testing experience. Shoebox lunch was the food migrants stored for their trip during the Great Migration, which was an evolutionary period in African American history. Their food symbolizes the establishment of African American communities across the United States and the African American identity.

MOFAD "African/American: Making the Nation's Table” | Colorline

The global pandemic might have prevented us from traveling to exhibits and dining outside of our homes. However, there are other ways that we can learn about and appreciate black food culture. Dine Diaspora, an agency who introduces and expands the influence of African food culture around the world, has great resources on their website. 31 Days of Black Women in Food is an annual award by Dine Diaspora that celebrates the achievements of black women in the food and beverage industry. During the past 4 years, the organization has told different stories of hundreds of individuals through food. The nomination for 2021 award is currently in progress. Black stories and culture continue to endure through new culinary adventures. 

SMELL IN MUSEUMS AROUND THE WORLD

 Musings Abroad | Jingshu Helen Yao

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With a new semester starting, I began several new courses. For Dr. Hooley McLaughlin’s Curating Science course, we were asked to keep a smell journal, a daily recording of odours and fragrances around us. While the idea of documenting scent is rather interesting, the assignment also made me realize that olfaction — sense of smell — might be underrated among all of our sensory organs. In school, we were often taught that human olfaction is inferior to many animals due to evolutionary reasons. Compared with vision, hearing, and touch, our ability to smell seems to be less salient. Though I imagine the loss of smell could bring potential problems to our daily lives, those problems seem less severe than the loss of sight or hearing. However, during my research for the smell journal, I came across many recent studies that suggested human olfaction is much more powerful than previously thought and in some cases even compatible with that of dogs. This discovery made me interested in how smells and our abilities to smell are presented in the museums, from both scientific and nonscientific angles. 

   Visitors sniffing scent sample at museum | Getty Image

 

The most recent news about "smell museums" is surrounding the creation of Odeuropa. The project aims to research smell in the context of both human biology and computer science. In November 2020, Odeuropa received a $3.4 million grant from European Union as a part of the Horizon 2020 Programme. The project will make use of AI to research the documentation of smell between the 16th and 20th century. Their mission is to create an online museum of smell and preserve the olfactory heritage of Europe. 

    Odeuropa Historical Smell Project | Yahoo News

“In Search of Lost Scents” is an exhibition at the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam in the Netherlands. It is the PhD project of Caro Verbeek, whose primary interest is to study the use of smell as a medium of art, especially among futurists and surrealists. The exhibition features smell in historical arts, which were distributed to visitors by facilitators on strips of test paper. A scentman, the artist who uses smell as the method of artistic expression, also performed on site. It was an eye-opening experience for the visitors and an interesting application of Verbeek’s study. 

    Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam | Getty Image

Other than treating smell as an object, it can also be used as a tool to create a more accessible museum space. In “Seeing by Smelling,” Caro Verbeek explains the ways in which smell, touch, and storytelling could facilitate the interpretation of visual art for low sighted people. For example, the smell of myrrh was added to the exhibition of the 'Adoration of the Magi' painting. Myrrh is not only an element presented in the painting, offered to Jesus by the three kings, it was also burnt in ritual to honor kings and gods. Adding the smell to the storytelling allows visually impaired participants to establish a connection to the artwork. Even for visitors who have no visual accessibility needs, the element of smell created a multi-sensory experience. Verbeek quoted neuro-scientist Richard Stevenson who says “scents are known to elicit intense historical sensations... even more so than images or sounds.”

WHAT IS NOT MY STORY TO TELL

 Musings Abroad | Jingshu Helen Yao

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I took creative writing as my undergraduate minor and I was asked to submit a short fiction story as an assignment for one of my courses. I wrote a story based on my latino roommate’s experiences of poverty and sexual violence. I did research beforehand and asked my roommate for confirmation and approval after the story was written. However, my work was still criticized for containing stereotypical perspectives about latino culture, and being potentially offensive to others. I was confused about how my work still turned out to be problematic when I took all possible measurements to avoid it.

The answer was simple. It was not my story to tell. Even if I carefully conducted research and interviews, and shared a similar identity of being an immigrant and person of colour, I can’t take on the first person narrative in my roommate’s story.

Illustration Artist | Source 

Similar to writers, artists are often encouraged to research, to consult, and to get consent from the community their works connect to. These strategies are helpful but they cannot fully ensure the proper representation in the final product, especially when we tell someone else’s story. A community is a collective of individual thoughts. While we tend to generalize a community based on similar ethnicity, class, education, and religious background, these vary largely between each individual. The consultation and approval of one or several members of the community may not represent many other thoughts and voices, which might lead to problems.

Walker Art Centre | Source

An example is the controversy surrounding the sculpture, "Scaffold", at the Walker Art Centre in Minnesota. "Scaffold," was modelled after 7 gallows meant to reflect on capital punishment and racial oppression. Its creator, Sam Durnt, stated that he designed the sculpture as a learning space. He also stated it was well received by audiences from various backgrounds when it was first displayed in Europe in 2012. However, when "Scaffold" was brought to the Walker Art Centre in 2017, the local Dakota First Nations community was deeply offended. One of the gallows was used to hang 38 Dakota men during the 1862 U.S.-Dakota War. The fact that "Scaffold" did not receive criticism from European audiences in 2012 does not ensure it will be appreciated from other members from those same communities, nor does it make it necessarily acceptable in different contexts. Similarly, Durnt's research efforts when creating the artwork still did not make up for the fact that it was not his story to tell. 

The City of Oaxaca | Source

In contrast, the best way to let the story be told is always through the communities themselves. A case study on Oaxacan Museos Comunitarios in Oaxaca, Mexico examined the value of community autonomy in the museum’s operation. Oaxaca has the largest South American Indigenous population. Former attempts to establish community museums in other parts of Mexico were not successful because the organization was run by professionals from the outside and the locals felt their culture was appropriated. For Oaxacan Museos Comunitarios, however, the professionals and scholars only act as advisors and provide workshops and training for community members that are elected to run the museum. Such strategy allowed self representation of the indigenous heritage and allowed the locals to tell their own story.

SEEKING HAPPINESS: A PEEK AT MUSEUMS ABOUT HAPPINESS AROUND THE WORLD

 Musings Abroad | Jingshu Helen Yao

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Who doesn't want to be happy? For many years, psychologists have studied the causes behind human emotions. Writers and artists create works that attempt to make people happy. Sociologists research the impact that happiness has on both personal and societal wellbeing. Museums dedicate themselves to the most intriguing parts of human history, and happiness is no exception.

In the midst of a pandemic, words such as anxiety and depression seem to dominate what we discuss nowadays. While mental health and the wellbeing of people becomes more critical than ever, the Happiness Research Institution in Denmark opened the Happiness Museum. The museum is located in Copenhagen's pastel-perfect historic center. While the small space of exhibitions and activities only took up 240 square meters, they attempted to show the visitors answers to some big questions. How have the standards of happiness changed throughout history? How does the concept of happiness vary across countries and cultures? Which type of society makes people happier, and what can the policymakers do to improve the wellbeing of people?

The Happiness Museum | source

Meik Wiking spoke of the mission of the Happiness Museum in an interview with CNN. One of the Happiness Research Institution’s studies centred on why people’s happiness in Nordic countries usually ranks highly compared to the rest of the globe. According to the data from the United Nations' annual World Happiness Report, Finland and Denmark are at the top of the happiest countries around the world, even though both countries have relatively cold weather, longer night times, and high taxes. Danish psychologist Marie Helweg-Larsen believes that trust is a critical reason, as well as the casual attitude Danish people have in their lives. The Happiness Research Institution presents their research results through the museum exhibition in the hope that those who visit the museum will leave a bit happier and wiser.

The Museum of Happiness | source

Though most media claim that the Happiness Museum is the first of its kind in the world, in my research I also came across the Museum of Happiness that opened in London, UK, in 2017. While the Denmark institution mainly took a social science approach to discuss the topic of happiness, the museum in London seems to be more science-based. Aside from free exhibitions and fun activities on the psychology of happiness, London's Museum of Happiness also provides training and workshops on how to become a happiness facilitator, online videos for individual wellbeing, and resources for organizations on building a positive working environment. With a longer record of operation and development, London's Museum of Happiness not only provides knowledge on happiness but also gives guidance on how to put the knowledge to use.

The Happy Place | source

Both museums in Copenhagen and London focus on educating their audience about happiness, in contrast to the main goal of pop-up exhibition “Happy Place” who intends to let audiences have fun. The exhibition features “the world’s largest indoor Confetti Dome, six-foot-tall X’s and O’s surrounded by red lips, the famed Rubber Ducky Bathtub, the wildly popular Cookie Room scented with the aroma of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies, an Upside Down room that defies gravity, and Super Bloom, a room filled with 40,000 golden handmade flowers.”

Happy Place first started in Los Angeles and soon made its way to other big cities in the United States. The Harbourfront Centre in Toronto also hosted the exhibition between November 2018 and January 2019. Recently, Happy Place opened in Sydney, Australia.

No matter in which country these museums and exhibitions are found, what form and approach they take, it’s comforting to think about institutions that are devoted to improving the mental well-being of the world, especially during this special time.

IT'S ALIVE!: A LOOK AT LIVING HISTORY MUSEUMS IN EUROPE

Musings Abroad | Chloé Houde

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The first living history museum I ever visited was the Village Historique Acadien in New Brunswick and I fell in love. Exploring all those old buildings while learning about the history of the region, its people, and its traditions from costumed interpreters made all this history come alive. I remember crying as I sat in the living room of an old home with other visitors as a woman recounted the emotional story of the Acadian deportation. I had learned this history before, but the setting and the first-person narrative of the story made this experience more personal in that moment, like it was being told to you by someone who lived it. I also remember enjoying some warm fresh baked bread from the local bakery, which only added to my overall experience as I learned about historical baking and cooking. Living history museums are spaces where learning becomes intertwined with experience. On top of being great spaces for education, living history museums act as preservers of traditional architecture, agricultural techniques, arts and crafts, and more, by not only conserving physical objects, but by practicing embodied artisanal knowledge that can sometimes only be kept alive through people.

Village Historique Acadien in New Brunswick | Source

Canada and the United Stated have their fair share of living history museums, and Toronto is lucky enough to have a few in its vicinity: Black Creek Pioneer Village, Fort York, and Markham Museum. For this article, I wanted to highlight living history museums in Europe that preserve important knowledge and keep local history alive.

Europe is filled with living history museums, such as the Strážnice Museum of the Villages of South-east Moravia in the Czech Republic. Strážnice has been open since 1981 and showcases Moravian folk costumes, traditions, architecture, and art. This living history museum is unique for its preservation of viticulture and wine growing techniques over time. Visitors can witness ancestral crafts such as smithery, weaving, pottery, wine making (including partaking in wine tasting), and can attend harvest festivals and folklore ensemble competitions!

Strážnice Museum's website. The text translates to "Folk crafts and traditional agriculture." | Source

In France, the Musée des Maisons Comtoises is a living history museum made up of 35 historic homes and buildings from the Franche-Comté region that spans from 1750 to 1950. The site presents itself as a nature haven and a place to relax, surrounded by gardens, a pond, a forest, and an orchard. They have animals, a small farm, and buildings that reflect many different facets of society, such as workshops, communal ovens, chapels, homes, and more. The Musée also offers visitors a range of demonstrations and activities, such as bread baking and making your own cosmetics. They are very focused with questions about what the past can bring to the future and make connections between the sustainable everyday life of the museum with issues of today. Some of the topics covered are the decline of the bee population and the problems within the agricultural sector.

"Jardins des simples," one of the gardens at the Musée des Maisons Comtoises | Source

In Aarhus, Denmark, the living history museum of Dem Gamle By (or "The Old Town" in English) showcases a small town from the 16th to the 19th century. When it opened in 1914, it was the first living history museum that showcased town life rather than rural or village life. The town is made up of 75 historical buildings that were reconstructed there from all over the country. The costumed historical interpreters of the site work in the city in traditional roles, such as blacksmiths, merchants, and cooks, which add to the air of this living historical town. The museum has greatly expanded over the last century, with more buildings, gardens, structures, and objects added over the years. They also feature exhibits and programming for visitors who want to experience and learn about historical Danish life.

Dem Gamle By in Aarhus, Denmark | Source

Finally, the living history museum of Archeon in the Netherlands showcases three different historical periods, namely the Stone Age, the Roman period, and the Medieval period, all from the perspective of this one location. Archeon features a hunter-gatherer camp, a Roman town, and a medieval town through which visitors can discover these three different periods and how they affected the history of the Netherlands. Archeon celebrates many historical and traditional festivals, such as the Midsummer Fair, the Roman Festival, and the Midwinter Fair,  as well as holding knight tournaments and showcasing cooking form these distinct historical periods. As with any living history site, Archeon offers demonstrations and unique experiences for visitors. Living history museums rarely venture before the Middle Ages in their historical recreations, and so having three older historical periods shown at one site makes it into an enriching environment where visitors can connect with the past.

The "Mesothilicum" section of Archeon, which encompasses the period from 8800 to 5300 BCE | Source

Living history museums are rich with potential when it comes to conservation and education that keeps knowledge and traditions alive for generations of visitors, all set in an immersive environment. As I mentioned, the few museums highlighted in this article are only a handful of what is available in Europe, where there are many opportunities to connect with the past in an experiential way. As travel remains risky during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, consider safely traveling to the past at a local living history museum this summer!