Past Events

2 September 2010

In the Eye of the Storm: Jews underground in Hitler’s Berlin

A Lecture by Roger Moorhouse to mark the publication of his new book, Berlin at War: Life and Death in Hitler’s Capital.  Held at The Wiener Library, 4 Devonshire Street, London W1W 5BH.


30 June 2010

Czernowitz in Jewish Memory by Prof Marianne Hirsch & Prof Leo Spitzer

A lecture by Prof Marianne Hirsch and Prof Leo Spitzer (Columbia University) inspired by the recent publication of their book Ghosts of Home: The Afterlife of Czernowitz in Jewish Memory.  Held at The Wiener Library, 4 Devonshire Street, London, W1W 5BH.


22 June 2010

Writing Wrongs: Martin Amis on Time's Arrow
In conversation with Prof Richard Evans

The last in the Library's lecture series, 'Writing Wrongs: The Nazi Era in Fiction'.  Held at The Wiener Library, 4 Devonshire Street, London, W1W 5BH.


17 June 2010

FilmTalk: Marlene Dietrich: the Prodigal Daughter returns. A Foreign Affair (Billy Wilder 1948)
by Prof Erica Carter, University of Warwick

This lecture took the film A Foreign Affair (Billy Wilder 1948) as a starting point to explore the sexual and political ambiguities surrounding Dietrich's star image, and considered her mixed reception by German audiences.

Held at The Wiener Library, 4 Devonshire Street, London, W1W 5BH.

 

15 June 2010

Private View: Scenes from a Family History

The opening of David Aronsohn's new exhibition held at
The Wiener Library, 4 Devonshire Street, London, W1W 5BH.

 

   

11 June 2010

The Holocaust and Modern Genocide

A one day conference in partnersthip with Kingston University London held at The British Academy, 10 Carlton House Terrace, London, SW1Y 5AH.


26 May 2010

Jews in Football: Mediating between the Gentleman's Sport and the Professional Game
by Prof Detlev Claussen, University of Hanover


A special lecture by Professor Detlev Claussen, organised in collaboration with the Leo Baeck Institute.

Held at The Wiener Library, 4 Devonshire Street, London, W1W 5BH.


13 May 2010


Lecture: Empire by Land or Sea? Germany's Imperial Imaginary, 1870-1945
by Professor Geoff Eley, University of Michigan


Part of the Wiener Library/Birkbeck Lecture Series 2009-10.

Held at the Clore Lecture Theatre, Birkbeck College, University of London.


22 April 2010


FilmTalk: The Ambivalence of Disgust – Jud Süss in Nazi Germany
by Dr Daniel Wildmann, LBI London, Queen Mary, University of London


Part of the FilmTalk series Jews, Nazis, Hollywood, this lecture investigates these questions by analysing the beginning of the film Jud Süss by Veit Harlan (1940).

Held at The Wiener Library, 4 Devonshire Street, London, W1W 5BH.


15 April 2010

D M Thomas on The White Hotel
Chaired by Eva Hoffman


The fourth in the Library's lecture series, 'Writing Wrongs: The Nazi Era in Fiction', examining the historical perspective of Nazi era fiction.

The lecture was chaired by Eva Hoffman, writer and academic.

Held at The Wiener Library, 4 Devonshire Street, London, W1W 5BH.


18 March 2010


Philip Kerr on The Bernie Gunther Mysteries
Chaired by Guy Walters


The third in the Library's lecture series, 'Writing Wrongs: The Nazi Era in Fiction', examining the historical perspective of Nazi era fiction.

The lecture was chaired by Guy Walters, author and editor.

Held at The Wiener Library, 4 Devonshire Street, London, W1W 5BH.


8 March 2010

Raoul Wallenberg in Budapest: Myth, History and Holocaust
by Dr Paul Levine


A special pre-launch lecture on a new prize-winning book from Vallentine Mitchell. The evening featured a short lecture by Dr Paul Levine as well as a question and answer session and book signing.

Click here to listen to an audio recording of this lecture courtesy of Backdoor Broadcasting Company.


28 February 2010

The Wiener Library at Jewish Book Week
Philipp Manes: A Theresienstadt Chronicle. Presented by Ben Barkow & Klaus Leist


To mark the long-awaited publication of the English translation of Philipp Manes' wartime diaries, co-editors Ben Barkow and Klaus Leist presented the work at Jewish Book Week in an event chaired by Victoria Glendinning.

Held at the Royal National Hotel, Bedford Way, London, WC1H 0DG.


11 February 2010


Lecture: Italy's Divided Memory. World War Two, 1940-1945.
by Professor John Foot, University College London


Part of the Wiener Library/Birkbeck Lecture Series 2009-10, Prof Foot investigated the status of fascism, the war and the Holocaust in post-war Italian culture.

Click here to listen to an audio recording of this lecture courtesy of Backdoor Broadcasting Company.


9 February 2010

Rescue and Romance: Love in Word and Deed
by Anne Sebba


A special lecture given at The Wiener Library by Anne Sebba as part of 'Past Caring: A Celebration of Love in History', to celebrate the lives of Ida and Louise Cook and their efforts to rescue Jews from Europe.

To find out more about 'Past Caring', please visit the website.

This lecture was supported by the Transformation Fund.


4 February 2010


John Boyne on 'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas'
Chaired by Paul Salmons


The second in the Library's lecture series, 'Writing Wrongs: The Nazi Era in Fiction', examining the historical perspective of Nazi era fiction.

The lecture was chaired by Paul Salmons, Head of Curriculum and Development at the Holocaust Education Development Programme at London University's Institute of Education.

Held at The Wiener Library, 4 Devonshire Street, London, W1W 5BH.


26 January 2010


Rachel Seiffert on 'The Dark Room'
Chaired by Professor Robert Eaglestone


Rescheduled from 8 December 2009, this was the first in the Library's new series 'Writing Wrongs: The Nazi Era in Fiction' examining fiction set in the Nazi era.The subject of this lecture was Rachel Seiffert's first novel, The Dark Room, which explores the legacy of Nazi guilt in Germany through the related stories of three 20th century Germans.

The lecture was chaired by Prof Robert Eaglestone, Professor of Contemporary Literature and Thought at Royal Holloway, University of London, and Deputy Director of Royal Holloway’s Research Centre of the Holocaust and Twentieth Century History.


Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother: The War Years

A special evening at the Residence of the Austrian Ambassador featuring a talk by The Hon William Shawcross, official biographer of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. Shawcross presented new findings regarding Queen Elizabeth’s thoughts and attitudes during this critical period.

The evening was held to raise funds for the Library’s move to new premises in Spring 2011.


4 November 2009

Lecture: The War Was Only Yesterday: Russia through the Prism of World War II
by Dr Stephen Lovell


First lecture of the Wiener Library/Birkbeck Lecture Series 2009-10.

Dr Lovell is a Reader in Modern European History at King's College London. His research interests lie in the social and cultural history of nineteenth- and twentieth-century Russia. He is the author of the prize-winning Summerfolk: A History of the Dacha, 1710-2000 (Cornell University Press, 2003), a book on the Russian out-of-town weekend or summer house. He has also written on reading and print culture, generations, and various other topics in Russian history. His latest book is an overview of the Soviet experience, The Soviet Union: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press, 2009).

Click here to listen to an audio recording of this lecture courtesy of Backdoor Broadcasting Company.


29 October 2009

FilmTalk: “Exile Actors in Hollywood during World War II: An Introduction”
by Professor Tim Bergfelder


The first in the FilmTalk series Jews, Nazis, Hollywood, the lecture placed migration patterns of Jewish exiles to Hollywood within wider industrial and political contexts, and analysed some distinctive career trajectories, such as those of Felix Bressart and Curt Bois. Film examples drawn from included Casablanca (1942) and To Be or Not To Be (1942).


24 September 2009

Lecture: Before the Holocaust: The Nazi concentration camps, 1933-39
by Dr Nik Wachsmann

A lecture by Dr Nik Wachsmann to mark the completion of a 3-year research project at Birkbeck College, University of London. Dr Wachsmann will present research findings on pre-WWII SS camps featuring an overview of the camps before the war, from their chaotic birth in 1933 to the escalation of terror and forced labour in 1938/9. The lecture was followed by the launch of a pre-war camp exhibition and reception.

Click here to listen to an audio recording of this lecture courtesy of Backdoor Broadcasting Company.


30 June 2009

Lecture: New Life on the ‘Mazzes Island’? Jewish life in Austria post 1945 by Chief Rabbi Paul Eisenberg

A lecture by Chief Rabbi Paul Eisenberg as part of the lecture series, “1938-2008: Legacies and Lessons in post-war Austria”, organised by the Austrian Embassy London, in co-operation with the Wiener Library and the Austrian Cultural Forum London.


25 June 2009

Lecture: The Universal Hero: Raoul Wallenberg by Tanja Schult

A lecture by Tanja Schult of Stockholm University discussing how his story incorporates both a classical hero narrative which has survived the ‘un-heroic’ 20th century, and that Wallenberg indeed succeeds to represent a new hero-type, the non-patriotic or universal hero.


18 June 2009

Seminar: War, Refugees and Testimony


Featuring lectures by Professor Tony Kushner, Dr Anthony Grenville, Dr Olaf Jensen, Dr Bea Lewkowicz and Professor J.A.S. Grenville, the seminar examined the arrival of refugees as a result of war, their contribution to Britain and the historical importance of the stories and testimony they leave behind. The seminar was followed by an evening reception to mark the launch of Refugee Voices, the Association of Jewish Refugee's audio-visual testimony project.


9 June 2009

Lecture: Memories of Survival: The Starachowice Factory Slave Labor Camps
by Professor Christopher Browning (University of North Carolina)


A lecture by Professor Christopher Browning as part of the 2008-9 Wiener Library/Birkbeck Lecture Series.

Click here to listen to an audio recording of this lecture courtesy of Backdoor Broadcasting Company.


12 May 2009

Lecture: “Changing minds and building institutions: political developments in Austria since 1945”
by Anton Pelinka, discussion moderated by Professor R Luther


Part of the lecture series, “1938-2008: Legacies and Lessons in post-war Austria”, organised by the Austrian Embassy London, in co-operation with the Wiener Library and the Austrian Cultural Forum London.


7 May 2009

Lecture: Well Hello Gorgeous: Barbra Streisand as the Jewish Diva
by Dr Michele Aaron, University of Birmingham


A lecture by Dr Michele Aaron as part of the Wiener Library/Leo Baeck Institute FilmTalk series. The talk examined Barbra Streisand’s successful career and the way in which she has split opinion, not only on the subject of her beauty but also with regard to her work as an actor and director.


5-6 May 2009

The 4th Aubrey Newman Annual Lecture & Colloquium 2009
Britain and the Holocaust - Remembering and Representing War & Genocide
University of Leicester in co-operation with The Wiener Library


A lecture by Prof Dan Stone, Royal Holloway, University of London, and interdisciplinary colloquium engaging in recent research on Britain’s reactions to the Second World War and the Holocaust during and after the ‘Third Reich’.


15 April 2009

Lecture: Explaining the Rise and Fall of Fascism
by Professor Michael Mann (University of California, Los Angeles)


A lecture by Professor Michael Mann as part of the 2008-9 Wiener Library/Birkbeck Lecture Series.

Click here to listen to an audio recording of this lecture courtesy of Backdoor Broadcasting Company.


1 April 2009

Lecture: “An attempt at justice: New research on NS-trials in Austria after 1945”
by Winfried Garscha, discussion moderated by Stephen Tyas


Part of the lecture series, “1938-2008: Legacies and Lessons in post-war Austria”, organised by the Austrian Embassy London, in co-operation with the Wiener Library and the Austrian Cultural Forum London.


18 March 2009

Lecture: Renoir’s La Grande Illusion (1937).  An Ambiguous Masterpiece
by Martin O’Shaughnessy (Nottingham Trent University)


Part of the Wiener Library/Leo Baeck Institute FilmTalk series.  The talk examined the ambiguities in the film La Grande Illusion (1937).


3 March 2009

Lecture: “The legacy of Nazi-expropriation in Austria: The impact of the Historical Commission on research and restitution”
by Clemens Jabloner, discussion moderated by Alice Teichova


Part of the lecture series, “1938-2008: Legacies and Lessons in post-war Austria”, organised by the Austrian Embassy London, in co-operation with the Wiener Library and the Austrian Cultural Forum London.


1 March 2009

Connecting Conversations with David Grossman
In Partnership with the Wiener Library


The leading Israeli author David Grossman talked to psychoanalyst Orna Hadary at UCL.


1 March 2009

The Wiener Library at Jewish Book Week 2009: Who Will Write Our History?

Author Samuel Kassow was in conversation with Ben Barkow, Director of the Wiener Library, to launch the UK publication of his book ‘Who Will Write Our History?’


23 February 2009

The Wiener Library at Jewish Book Week 2009: My Father’s Roses

As part of Jewish Book Week 2009, the Wiener Library’s Bridget McGing from her mother’s book, ‘My Father’s Roses’.


19 February 2009

Lecture: Atrocity in War: British and American Experiences
by Professor Joanna Bourke (Birkbeck)


A lecture by Professor Joanna Bourke as part of the 2008-9 Wiener Library/Birkbeck Lecture Series.


11 February 2009

Lecture: “Aspects of Austria's dealing with her Nationalsocialist Past. The Documentation Centre of Austrian Resistance in Vienna (DÖW) in post-war Austria”
by Brigitte Bailer-Galanda (Head of DÖW), discussion moderated by Robert Knight


Part of the lecture series, “1938-2008: Legacies and Lessons in post-war Austria”, organised by the Austrian Embassy London, in co-operation with the Wiener Library and the Austrian Cultural Forum London.


25 January 2009

Panel Discussion: Down the Generations - does reconciliation become harder for those who follow the survivors?
Part of the Holocaust Memorial Day theme for 2009 'Standing up to Hatred'


Rabbi David Goldberg chaired a panel discussion featuring Anita Lasker Wallfisch, Katherine Klinger and Dr Chris Bennett of University of Sheffield to explore whether and how members of the Second and Third generations struggle more than their parents and grandparents with issues of anger, hatred, desire for revenge.

Held at the Liberal Jewish Synagogue, 28 St John's Wood Road, London, NW8 7HA


15 January 2009


Book Launch: “Haunted City: Nuremberg and the Nazi Past”
by Dr Neil Gregor (University of Southampton)
Joint winner of the Fraenkel Prize 2008


The Wiener Library and Yale University Press hosted a lecture by Dr Neil Gregor to launch his Fraenkel Prize winning book, "Haunted City: Nuremberg and the Nazi Past".


13 January 2009

Lecture: “Reaching out to the victims and combating antisemitism: the Austrian National Fund and the International Task Force on Holocaust Education”
by Hannah Lessing (Secretary General, Austrian National Fund)


Part of the lecture series, “1938-2008: Legacies and Lessons in post-war Austria”, organised by the Austrian Embassy London, in co-operation with the Wiener Library and the Austrian Cultural Forum London.

 
16 and 19 November 2008

Four Seasons Lodge at the Jewish Film Festival 08

For 25 summers a spirited group of Holocaust survivors have gathered at ‘Four Seasons Lodge’ in the Catskill Mountains of New York.  Inspired by their camaraderie, and with closure of the Lodge on the cards, New York Times journalist Andrew Jacobs spent three months recording them with a team led by documentary pioneer Albert Maysles (Grey Gardens).  Brimming with delight, heartbreak and black comedy, Four Seasons Lodge reminds us not to waste a single moment.

Shown on Sunday 16th November at 4pm, and on Wednesday 19th November at the Odeon Swiss Cottage.


20 November 2008

Lecture: Blacks and Jews, Song and Dance
by Richard Dyer (King’s College, London)


A lecture by Richard Dyer as part of the Wiener Library/Leo Baeck Institute FilmTalk series.  The talk will examine the interactions between Jews and African-Americans in popular culture, focusing on the films The Jazz Singer (1927) and Dirty Dancing (1987).


6 November 2008

Lecture: Righteous and courageous in the face of Nazism: Austrian Resistance against the Nazi regime. Myths and realities
by Helmut Konrad (University of Graz), discussion moderated by Ben Barkow


Part of the lecture series, “1938-2008: Legacies and Lessons in post-war Austria”, organised by the Austrian Embassy London, in co-operation with the Wiener Library and the Austrian Cultural Forum London


5 November 2008

Lecture: Blood Libels
by Professor Anthony Julius (Senior Solicitor-Advocate, Mishcon de Reya)


A lecture by Professor Anthony Julius as part of the 2008-9 Wiener Library/Birkbeck Lecture Series.


28 October 2008


Lecture: Flight or Exodus: Holocaust Survivors and Illegal Immigration to Palestine
by Ronny Loewy (Filmmuseum Frankfurt)


A lecture by Ronny Loewy as part of the Wiener Library/Leo Baeck Institute FilmTalk series.


20-22 September 2008


When Speech forms a Bridge: A Second and Third Generation Workshop led by Dina Wardi

A unique workshop, held at the Wiener Library, that invited second and third generation descendants to discuss together the impact and effects of the past.


2 July 2008

Book Reading: My Father's Roses

A reading by Bridget McGing of extracts from the recently published and acclaimed book My Fathers's Roses by Nancy Kohner, with a prologue by Bridget McGing.


11 June 2008

Lecture: Professor Jay Winter (Yale University)

Part of the Wiener/Birkbeck Lecture series on War and Race, a lecture by Professor Jay Winter on The Degeneration of War held at Birkbeck College, London WC1.


28 and 29 April 2008

Conference: Antisemitism in Theory and Practice: Legacies in Cultural and Political Thought

An international conference organised by the Wiener Library and the Leo Baeck Institute London as a contribution to the European Network for Research into historical and current antisemitism.

The conference looked at theories of antisemitism and antisemitic legacies in modern cultural and political theories.