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Audiovisual Media Collection

Our audiovisual media collection encompasses both analog and digital sound and image carriers. These include historical sound recordings, family films, video art and in-house productions that were created for exhibitions.

Family and Amateur Films

The collection focuses on one-off, private films and video recordings from the 1920s to the present day. We collect family films and amateur films as a key component of our audiovisual heritage. They provide insights into everyday Jewish life, religious traditions in regions and families and the interior design of private dwellings and Jewish institutions.

Interviews

Video and audio interviews document the changes in Jewish self-perceptions and provide a rich source for historical research. We run a number of projects in this area and collect interview material that has been generated by research projects and exhibitions elsewhere.

Media Art

The artistic works that we have acquired in recent years include the 3-channel video installations Drummerrsss by Gilad Ratman (2020) and Malka Germania by Yael Bartana (2021), as well as Neuland, an eight-part audio and video installation by Yael Reuveny (2023), all of which were commissioned by the JMB.

Claude Lanzmann Audio Archive

The Lanzmann audio archive is an extraordinarily valuable holding. Comprising around 220 hours of recordings, it documents the research and preliminary interviews conducted by Claude Lanzmann and his assistants in different countries and many different languages before the filming of Shoah. In 2023, the recordings, together with Lanzmann’s monumental film, were inscribed into the UNESCO register of the world’s documentary heritage. They will be made accessible in their entirety in the years to come.

Empty cardboard box with a white label. A dozen music cassettes lie around it.

Claude Lanzmann’s audio archive; Jewish Museum Berlin, photo: Roman März

Contact

Dr. Tamar Lewinsky
Curator of Audiovisual Media
T +49 (0)30 259 93 458
t.lewinsky@jmberlin.de

Address

Jewish Museum Berlin 
Lindenstraße 9–14 
10969 Berlin

How can I donate objects, photographs, and documents to the museum?

Interested in Contributing to Our Collections?

Do you own materials related to Jewish culture and history in Germany that could be of interest to us? We would be delighted to hear from you! 

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I would like to depict or borrow an object from your collections. Who should I contact?

Your contacts for photo permissions are Valeska Wolfgram and Birgit Maurer-Porat (T +49 (0)30 259 93 433, email: fotodoku@jmberlin.de). Please consider that it may take between four to six weeks  Please note that the processing time for requests can take between 4 and 6 weeks. We will be happy to provide you with further information on fees and reproduction conditions on request.

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How can I conduct research using the museum’s archive, collections, and library?

Our Reading Room is open to the public. You can also research using our library’s holdings and some of our collection’s holdings online. To view additional holdings, please contact the responsible curators.

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Abstract painting in blue, black and yellow tones

Our Collection

Landing Page
Archive: documenting Jewish life
Current page: Audiovisual Media: historic sound recordings, family films and video art
Library: books about Jewish art, culture, and history
Fine Arts: Jewish history from the perspective of visual culture
Photography: art photography, historical press images and family photos
Jewish Object: Material Culture: objects and textiles for nonreligious purposes
Jewish Object: Applied Arts: objects produced by German-Jewish craftspeople and companies
Jewish Object: Judaica: ritual and everyday items of religious purpose
Digital Content
Online Collections: explore selected objects (in German)
Online Showcase: digital presentation of our past collections, video projects, and more
Object in Showcase: stories from our collection
See also
The History of Our Collections: learn about the initial inspiration and transition to today's museum
Our Collection Management: responsibilities and contact information
Sources of Collection Holdings: in publications of the Berlin museum (1978 to 1995)
Provenance Research: unveiling the origins of our objects
Conservation: how to presperve our objects for future generations

Links to topics that may be of interest to you

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