For many years, nestled in the campus of Tel Aviv University, the Diaspora Museum made space for stories of Jews who had made their lives outside of Israel. The museum highlighted the importance of a diverse Jewish narrative while simultaneously creating a divide between Jews of Israel and Jews of the world. In the newly renovated and renamed Anu – Museum of the Jewish People, this divide has been dismantled. Rather than focusing on the Diaspora, the museum places emphasis on inclusion.
“The goal is for everyone to come, get interested and find a piece of themselves in the exhibitions,” said Assaf Gamzu, Director of Education at Anu. “The Diaspora Museum is a treasured institution. We wanted to honor the museum and keep its history intact while giving a new take on the subject of Jewish life around the world,” said Gamzu.
When planning for the multi-million-dollar renovation, the museum staff set out to extend their arms to everyone, young and old, locals and foreigners. Five months ago, after years of painstaking work, the museum finally reopened. Due to corona guidelines, the directors decided to forego a splashy event and veered toward a gradual opening. Now, with August heat at its height and families looking for quality content to fill the rest of summer break, Anu has developed several programs specifically for children.
Gamzu, 37, is the former curator of the Comics and Cartoon Museum in Holon. He is an educator and a father. He speaks of the museum with great caring and enthusiasm.
In reworking the rich Diaspora Museum history into a new, more unified, and interactive form, Gamzu was able to draw on his past experiences in galleries as well as at home with his family.
“It was important to us for children to be able to enjoy the exhibitions either on their own or together with their parents. We put a lot of thought into the way in which the content interacts with the viewer. We have the MishpachAnu program, which is a tour of the museum for the whole family,” said Gamzu. In this path, kids receive a kit including riddles, stickers, maps and in ID bracelet that they can scan at various points throughout the museum. The scanned items are sent to their unique user and can be explored later.
In addition, the museum employed celebrated podcaster Yuval Malachi to tailor audio content for children, which accompanies their experience in the museum.
“The podcast is available on our app and can be downloaded prior to arrival at the museum,” added Gamzu.
In the Heroes Gallery, visitors can take in stories of Jewish artists, scientists, leaders and public figures from around the world over time. The individuals chosen represent a broad range of fields of interest, timelines and levels of influence. The idea is to present the immense scope of Jewish life around the globe.
In Gamzu’s eyes, there is truly something for everyone at Anu.
“Come, just come visit,” he urged.
The Anu Museum is open seven days a week. Entrance to the museum is possible with a Green Pass or negative corona test only.