Release Date: January 11, 2007
Three-part exhibition at Kennesaw State University tells lost stories of the Holocaust and WWII
Contact: Frances Weyand, Director of University Relations, 770-423-6203 or fweyand@kennesaw.edu
KENNESAW, Ga. (Jan. 18, 2007) — A new three-part Holocaust exhibition showcasing untold stories of World War II and the Holocaust will be unveiled at Kennesaw State University at a grand opening ceremony Jan. 18. The opening event is from 5:30-8:30 p.m. at the KSU Center (3333 Busbee Drive NW, Kennesaw, Ga. 30144). It will include docent-led tours, a survivor book signing, guest survivor speakers, a short video and a performance of “Children of the Wire Fence,” an original play based on the stories depicted in the exhibitions. These three premiere displays have been combined to create a never-before-seen exhibition, which will be free and open to the public beginning Jan. 22.
The entrance to the exhibition features “The Butterfly Project,” a nationwide effort sponsored by the Holocaust Museum Houston to collect 1.5 million handcrafted butterflies to represent each child victim of the Holocaust. The local component of the project was curated by Natasha Lovelace and Charlotte Collins, both assistant professors of art at Kennesaw State University. The butterfly display will lead into “Parallel Journeys: World War II and the Holocaust through the Eyes of Teens,” created by the KSU Holocaust Education Program in partnership with the Atlanta History Center and funded by the KSU Foundation and the university. The Anti-Defamation League and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum have also been instrumental in helping KSU complete the research for the exhibit. The exhibit was curated by a team led by Catherine Lewis, associate professor of history at KSU. Programs related to the exhibits are funded by the Marcus Foundation.
Panels from the Atlanta History Center’s “V for Victory: Georgia Remembers World War II” exhibit will be on display outside the “Parallel Journeys” space in the KSU Center. All three exhibits interlace together to paint a rarely seen picture of life on the frontlines and the home front from the perspective of those who endured the war firsthand.
“The partnership between Kennesaw State and the Atlanta History Center is exciting and has resulted in an important exhibition that will help students and the public understand this significant moment in world history and what it means for us today,” stated KSU President Daniel S. Papp.
Individuals with Atlanta connections are featured in the “Parallel Journeys” exhibition, including Eugen Schoenfeld, William A. Scott III, Alan Davies, Murray Lynn and Mathilda Stein. Profiles of well-known teens, not all of whom were heroic, are also a main focus of the exhibition. Elie Wiesel (Auschwitz survivor and Nobel Peace Prize winner), members of the resistance group the White Rose and Traudl Junge (Adolf Hitler’s secretary) will be included. Lesser-known teens who survived the concentration camps, hid from the Nazis, led rescue efforts, served as soldiers, remained on the home front or aided individuals who were targets of Nazi oppression will finally have their stories told.
The new exhibition, which replaces “Anne Frank in the World,” is expected to be a popular attraction for student field trips from schools across the state. More than 12,000 students from counties throughout the state visited the Anne Frank exhibit, which opened in 2003 and even more students are expected to visit the “Parallel Journeys” exhibition, which will be on display for a minimum of three years. Group tours for the public will be available beginning in February. For more information or to volunteer, contact 678-797-2083 or visit www.kennesaw.edu/paralleljourneys.
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Kennesaw State University is a comprehensive, residential institution with a growing student population exceeding 20,000 from 132 countries. The third largest state university out of 35 institutions in the University System of Georgia, KSU offers more than 55 undergraduate and graduate degree programs.
The KSU College of the Arts is one of only four Georgia institutions to have achieved full national accreditation for all of its arts programs.