The Jewish Museum of Maryland is set to hold another session of its monthly public programs intended to amplify its installation “Picturing Past & Present: Sharing Our Stories,” an exhibition comprised of family photos from Jewish Marylanders.
The program will hold its next event on Oct. 19. The museum invites three people per program session who have submitted photos to the exhibition to come and spend 15 to 20 minutes speaking about their photos.
It’s part of what the museum’s executive director, Sol Davis, calls the museum’s “evolving participatory practice,” a major goal the organization is working on.
“When we talk about a participatory practice, we’re speaking about our invitation that the museum is extending to the public to co-produce, co-narrate, co-interpret the story of Jewish Maryland with us,” Davis said. “So, rather than tell the story from a singular kind of institutional voice, we want to work with the public to tell the story in a more collaborative way, with many perspectives and experiences included.”
The exhibition has been open since the museum completed its renovation project back in February. Davis said that the museum is approaching 100 submissions to the exhibition, comprised of nearly 300 photos.
He said that the idea is to submit three photos taken across multiple generations. Davis submitted two early family photos and one contemporary photo.
The executive director said that the photo submissions are welcome from all Jewish Marylanders, adding that the photos presented do not have to be from people living in the state.
Davis added that he moved to Maryland only five years ago and submitted his early family photographs from relatives living in Russia and Texas, as well as a contemporary photo taken from Maryland.
“I’m a Jewish person in Maryland right now, so I’m part of a Maryland Jewish community. We’re just wanting to get all those perspectives, whether people have been here for many generations or are newer to the Maryland Jewish community, like myself. We want to tell all of those stories through this exhibition,” Davis said.
Davis added that, during the “Sharing Our Stories” program, the three presenters will get to address an audience of the general public and often bring some family and friends to watch them.
Davis described the presentation sessions as “intimate,” as people are sharing their family histories and doing so through projecting images onto an immersive 16-by-9 video screen that lets the details in the photographs shine through.
He said that the presentations allow for “rich and meaningful dialogue” to take place during the program, which adds to the impact.
Davis said that having these presentations adds significant depth to the photos in the exhibit, because they can have captions on the photos to explain some context, and having a giant video screen and detailed explanations “elevates these stories.”
He added that the program also allows for some intergenerational connections, which is another component that the museum strives to include in its work.
“Our work is always intergenerational. It’s built that way, and when we can design programs that facilitate some conversations across generations, it’s very grounding and meaningful,” Davis said.
The museum has seen eagerness from community members to participate through the submissions already, and the presentations give people another opportunity to do so.
Davis emphasized that submissions for photographs to be included in the exhibition are open on a rolling basis and that the museum is working with people to get high-resolution digital versions of the photographs, meaning no one is giving away physical copies of family photos.
Davis said the exhibition and the presentations are emblematic of the mission of the museum and its goal to preserve and share the history of Jewish Maryland for generations to come.
“Culturally specific museums like the Jewish Museum of Maryland give a community of people the opportunity to tell a story on their own terms, which is important to do. And no culture is monolithic, so there’s a diversity of stories and perspectives. Through this participatory framework, we’re aiming to include and uplift as many perspectives and experiences as possible so people can get a deeper understanding of the diversity of Jewish life in Maryland across generations,” Davis said.
