Although what makes “Auschwitz: Not long ago. remains and objects point to death in the original
Not far away” a unique exhibition is its aspiration place of memory, while here it is easier to address
to spread the history of a place as cruelly unique a discourse of contextualization to help understand
as Auschwitz, and to do so, in addition, so many as a whole the phenomenon of the Holocaust. In
kilometres away from the original place of memory Auschwitz, the objects are presented as evidence
and with a travelling intention. A convincing of what happened, while in El Canal, in addition to
challenge to which no one has ever aspired to this the evidence, there are the elements that make it
level before, and which offers a very interesting possible to follow strategies aimed to educate on the
comparative reading. Holocaust.
Obviously, a travelling exhibition, away from its As stated by James Young (1993), nowadays a
original place, does not have the authenticity exhibition in a Holocaust Museum shows the
factor of the original place, which does not mean creators’ view in alignment with the social and
that this initial disadvantage cannot become a political contexts of the moment. However, this
real opportunity for improvement. What is lost in does not mean that the visitor’s perception will
authenticity is gained in context, didactic capacity be neutral, quite the contrary. What we perceive
and dignity of the victims to a certain extent. At as visitors will also largely rely on who we are at
the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum, an individual and collective level, and what our
we know the victims through their absence, being priorities are in a particular political, social, cultural
represented by what accompanied them prior to their or even memorial context.
disappearance. In a way, their memory is reduced to
his death. On the other hand, “Auschwitz: Not long In this sense, the general perception of the visitor is
ago. Not far away” is free to present the memory of positive and in line with the approach pursued by the
the Holocaust victims in a much broader way. The creators of the exhibition. Disseminate to know, and
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Observing Memories
ISSUE 2