Over the past 20 years, a few dozen new museums and memory institutions have opened in Poland. Modern architecture, attractive exhibition design, and extensive educational activities encourage large audiences to visit these new institutions. The phenomenon, however, has also provoked controversies. Many of these museum projects have become the subject of fierce debates over history and memory; no less important is the question of political control over them. The Warsaw Rising Museum, the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk, the Museum of the History of Polish Jews (POLIN) in Warsaw, the European Solidarity Centre in Gdańsk, and, more recently, the Polish History Museum in Warsaw were at some point at the center of the debate deeply connected with the growing role of memory disputes in both national and international politics. In particular for right-wing parties, the “politics of history” has become one of the main points on their agendas. Still, the phenomenon of the Polish museum boom cannot be limited to political disputes as many important initiatives in this field have been launched by independent activists and were later backed by national or local politicians. The presentation will propose an interpretation of the Polish museum boom and elucidate its political context.
Robert Kostro is a historian, journalist, and museum professional. He is Chairman of the Advisory Board of the European Network Remembrance and Solidarity (ENRS). In the 1980s, Kostro was active in the underground anti-communist group Young Poland Movement. He was Director of the Foreign Relations Office in the Chancellery of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland, Deputy Director of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, and Founding Director of the Polish History Museum. In addition to co-editing and co-authoring the books Pamięć i odpowiedzialność and Historia Polski od-nowa. Nowe narracje historii i muzealne reprezentacje przeszłości, Kostro published numerous articles in journals and newspapers such as Życie, Rzeczpospolita, Więź, and Nowe Książki.
Misha Glenny, IWM Rector, will moderate the colloquium.
