Defiance
Jewish Women and Design in the Modern Era
Exhibition
The exhibition reveals the important role that Jewish women designers played in German society’s process of emancipation and modernization in the early twentieth century—as women, as Jews, and as artists. Featuring exhibits by more than sixty designers, this is the world’s first collective exhibition on the theme. It brings together pioneering women who battled social marginalization to attain prominent positions in their own domains—until the Nazi regime destroyed their careers and lives.
11 Jul to 23 Nov 2025
Where
Old Building, level 1
Lindenstraße 9–14, 10969 Berlin
Some managed to escape and start afresh abroad, but almost all have remained excluded from the history of German art and culture up to the present day. Through their works, the Jewish Museum Berlin gives new visibility to their forgotten biographies and their artistic and entrepreneurial achievements. Visitors to the exhibition will encounter a broad spectrum of design and craft techniques, from goldsmithing and textiles, ceramics and wood carving, to fashion design and graphics.
Defiance: Jewish Women and Design in the Modern Era
- Exhibition Webpage
- Current page: Defiance: Jewish Women and Design in the Modern Era (11 Jul to 23 Nov 2025): Insights and information about the exhibition's topics
- Accompanying Events
- Exhibition Opening: Thu, 10 Jul 2025, 7 pm (exhibition open to visitors from 5 pm)
- Pioneering women of the 1920s – artistic research from the Modeschule Berlin at the JMB: Public presenation, Fri 18 Jul 2025, 10.30 am
- Creative Love! Long Night of Museums – Sun, 30 Aug 2025, starting 6 pm
- Publications
- Exhibition catalog: 2025, in German
- Guided Tours
- Public Tour in German: Sun 13 Jul, 10 Aug & 28 Sep 2025, 11 am
- Public Tour in English: Sat 2 Aug & 6 Sep 2025, 3 pm
- Guided Tour & Brunch: Sun 27 Jul, 24 Aug & 14 Sep 2025, 10.15 am
- Bookable Tour for Groups and Schools: Tour by appointment
- Digital Content
- Puppet Show, Menu Card, Children's Book: Digital Copies Accompanying the Exhibition (in German)
- Do you know Eva Samuel? How the Research for the Exhibition Took Off
- See also
- Jewish Women Ceramists from Germany after 1933: Online feature on Google Arts & Culture, in German
Exhibition Information at a Glance
- When 11 Jul to 23 Nov 2025
- Entry Fee 10 €, reduced 4 €
Online tickets will be available soon. - Where Libeskind-Bau 1. OG
Lindenstraße 9–14, 10969 Berlin
See Location on Map
Credits
Director
Hetty Berg
Management
Lars Bahners (Verwaltung), Julia Friedrich (Sammlung), Barbara Thiele (Vermittlung und Digitales)
Executive Assistants and Aides
Milena Fernando, Mathias Groß, Vera von Lehsten, Eva Weinreich
Curator
Michal S. Friedlander
Curatorial Advisor
Martina Lüdicke
Exhibition Manager
Deniz Roth
Project Assistant
Julia Dellith
Student Assistant
Laura Schummers
Voluntary Service
Finn Ferschke, Luise Orth
Head of Exhibitions
Nina Schallenberg
Collection Managemet
Katharina Wippermann (Leitung), Ulrike Gast (Registrar), Iris Blochel-Dittrich, Birgit Maurer-Porat, Valeska Wolfgram (Dokumentation)
Conservators
Barbara Decker, Stephan Lohrengel (paper), Rüdiger Tertel (metal), Ava Hermann, Ines Zimmermann (textile)
Exhibition Design (concept, architectur, graphic design, production management)
Anschlaege.de, Studio for Design
Marketing Campaign
Visual Space Agency, Julia Volkmar
Studio Bens, Jens Ludewig
Exhibition Texts and Copyediting
Michal S. Friedlander (texts), Martina Lüdicke, Marie Naumann, Katharina Wulffius (editing), Henriette Kolb, Anika Reichwald (copyediting)
Translationand and Translation Copyediting
Allison Brown (German-English), Michael Ebmeyer, Tanja Klapp (English-German), Kate Sturge (copyediting English)
Exhibition Construction
spreeDesign
Art Handling
Fißler & Kollegen GmbH
Media Planning and Installation
Eidotech
Painter
Lazar Malermeister GmbH
Graphic Production
Atelier Köbbert
Audio Production
Studio Platzhalter
Exhibition Lighting
Victor Kégli
Electrician
Apleona GmbH
Education and Communication
Diana Dressel (Department head), Nina Wilkens
Accompanying Programme
Daniel Wildmann (Department head), Signe Rossbach (Event curator), Maria Röger, Shlomit Tripp, Katja Vathke
Archive
Aubrey Pomerance (Department head), Franziska Bogdanov, Ulrike Neuwirth
Library
Monika Sommerer (Department head), Bernhard Jensen, Theresa Polley, Ernst Wittmann
Marketing and Communication
Sandra Hollmann (Department head), Ha Van Dinh, Melanie Franke, Julia Jürgens, Margret Karsch, Katrin Möller, Amelie Neumayr
Digital and Publishing
Steffen Jost (Department head), Marie Naumann, Katharina Wulffius (Catalogue), Marina Brafa (Website), Debora Antmann, David Studniberg, Charlotte Struck (Jewish Places), Lea Simon (Research trainee)
Visitor Experience and Research
Christiane Birkert (Department head), Susann Holz, Johannes Rinke
Development
Anja Butzek (Department head), Sarah Winter
FREUNDE DES JMB
Johanna Brandt (management)
Events
Yvonne Niehues (Department head), Juliane Ganzer, Katja Rein, Falk Schneider, Danny Specht-Eichler, Gesa Struve
Legal Department and Tendering
Julia Lietzmann (Department head), Sascha Brejora, Olaf Heinrich, Jonas Nondorf
Finance and Controlling
Grit Schleheider (Department head), Odette Bütow, Rainer Christoffers, Andreas Harm, Denise Kurby, Cindy Niepold, Stefan Rosin, Katja Schwarzer
Human Resources
Brit Linde-Pelz (Department head), Manuela Gümüssoy, Lilith Wendt
Facility Management
Manuela Konzack (Department head), Guido Böttcher, Mirko Dalsch, André Küter, Marcel Kühle, Janine Lehmann, Christian Michaelis, Jan Viegils
ICT
Michael Concepcion (Leitung), Anja Jauert, Kathleen Köhler, Sebastian Nadler
Exhibition Maintenance
Leitwerk Servicing
Janitor Service
FAM
Cleaning
Piepenbrock Reinigung GmbH
Sercurity
Kötter Security SE
Sponsors
With funding provided by the Hauptstadtkulturfonds.
We also thank the David Berg Foundation for their kind support.
Media Cooperations
