Freedom for All? The History of One People in the Years of Revolution

A multidisciplinary research project prepared together with the Museum of Jewish History in Russia. The exhibition narrates the cultural, political and religious development of the Jewish community in Russia during the years of the revolution (1917-1919).

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On October 17, 2017, the Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center will open the exhibition "Freedom for All? The History of One People in the Years of Revolution", a multi disciplinary project prepared in partnership with the Museum of Jewish History in Russia. The exhibition narrates the cultural, political and religious development of the Jewish community in Russia during the years of the revolution (1917 – 1919).

This show features paintings, photographs, books, theatre posters, leaflets and posters of political parties from various museums, archives and private collections. The exhibits show the rise and diversity of the Jewish socio-political and artistic life before and after February 1917, the time of freedom, hope and their limitations in 1919. Paintings by Marc Chagall, Robert Falk, Issachar Ber Ryback and El Lissitzky feature among the exhibits. Many paintings and documents presented at the exhibition will be shown for the first time.

The structural basis of the exposition will consist of a timeline for Jewish history in the context of the Russian revolution prepared by the team of the multimedia documentary project "1917. The Free History". Besides historical facts and statistics, the chronicle features stories from the first-person perspective of the participants of the events such as Lev Trotsky, Yuliy Martov, Marс Chagall, Vera Inber, Semeyon Dubnov and Vasily Shulgin. Their stories will sound in the special spaces that express the spirit of the time and convey the character of their biographies as well as personalities. Visitors of the exhibition will be able to read their letters, hear their voices from old telephones and on the radio.

The wide range of historical materials used to prepare this exhibition reflects the entire diversity of the political and cultural life from 1917 to 1919. The exhibits and design create a feeling of being present and immersed in the atmosphere of the revolutionary times. It introduces a short but significant and rich period of the history of the Jewish community in Russia.

Curators: Grigory Kazovsky, Ekaterina Krylova.

Photo Credit: Unknown author, Jewish organisations during the May Day demonstration at Marsovo Pole in Petrograd. 1919