The Holocaust museum located in Washington D.C. has an interesting history from the efforts that went into the creation and design of this museum. Part of what makes this museum so interesting is the architecture, artifacts and the way that the museum tries to evoke the audience’s emotions. A thing to remember when discussing the Holocaust exhibits is that the museum wanted the audience to understand that, “the museum in Washington D.C., is not a center of Holocaust remembrance, but an extension of the fabric of the center: the original sites. ” These subjects can give a sense of meaning to the audience and how they could perceive the Holocaust in their own way.
When the audience first walks into the courtyard of the Holocaust …show more content…
In a way, these dark and menacing structures could cause people to think that this area evokes the idea of a gas chamber in a way. An interesting aspect about the design of the Holocaust museum is, “walls were not painted, pipe was left exposed, an excepted for people who, for one reason or another, had to leave, there is no escape. ” This decision to design the building is a smart one because it makes the visitor feel like there is no escape. The only way out is to go through the whole museum and to face the horrors and the reality of the Holocaust ahead. A direct contrast to the inside of the Holocaust Museum, is the Hall of Remembrance. The Hall of Remembrance was created so the viewer could reflect on the history of horrors that they had just witnessed and reflect on the lives lost. The Hall of Remembrance could be described as a room that, “has an enduring smooth and soothing light, like “the interior of a lantern. ” It is interesting that with the Hall of Remembrance the atmosphere of the room is peaceful and solemn. On the walls of the Hall of Remembrance are …show more content…
Other people grieve for the different societies that were abolished such as Jewish people, homosexuals, people with any type of disorder or ROMA just to name a few. An exhibit that stood out to me was “The Murder of the Handicapped” Exhibit. This exhibit explained what happened to people that suffered from learning disorders, or any abnormality in general. As discussed in the exhibit, “the "euthanasia" program required the cooperation of many German doctors, who reviewed the medical files of patients in institutions to determine which handicapped or mentally ill individuals should be killed. The doctors also supervised the actual killings.” This action proceeded for years where innocent people were murdered because they were different. This exhibit spoke to me because of the personal attachment I have to people who suffer from disabilities. I have suffered from a learning disability all my life, as well as a disability called NVLD also known as (Nonverbal Learning Disorder). It was shocking to learn that just because of a one change in a person in a way they could be banned from society or killed. I liked this one exhibit, but I felt that since this exhibit had such a strong history during the war, I would have liked to seen more artifacts. Reasons for why more objects could not be on display though, is that this exhibit is of a shocking nature and could offend people