Through Miranda's Eyes

Through Miranda's Eyes 31 Oct 2017 – 31 Mar 2018 is a global, 18-month cross-disciplinary project, functioning as an opening of Miranda exhibitions' World Tour. Supported by Europe for Citizens program of European Union, the project is dedicated to celebrating intercultural dialogue and reforming history education policies.

On 15th of Feb 2017 Miranda launched its world tour in the presence of former President of Finland Tarja Halonen. Within the frames of the project, Miranda exhibition will be opened in 10 European countries and translated to 20 languages. Through Miranda's Eyes tour will culminate in its opening at European Parliament, Brussels 19 March 2018. The project serves as a platform for bringing Miranda exhibition to new international destinations as well as for launching local national tours in each country. Miranda is already travelling locally in Croatia, Hungary and Estonia.

Background of the project

Through Miranda’s Eyes raises awareness about the Roma Holocaust in WWII and promotes Romani arts and culture. In WWII about half of European Roma became the victim of the Nazigenocide. The world recognized the Holocaust of Jews and forgot the Roma. Topic still remains unknown to general public. With growing number of refugees entering EU states, we need a platform for self-reflection: how to avoid repeating history? Is it truly possible to promote art and culture of a nation without the recognition of its past?

In 2001 Cultural Counsellor Veijo Baltzar, initiator of the project, interviewed Miranda, a Slovakian-born Holocaust survivor and became inspired by her story. Years later, in cooperation with 14 international archives and museums, Baltzar turned Miranda's authentic story into a novel and an exhibition in 2011. Miranda exhibition was born from Baltzar's vision of creating innovative concept of teaching about Holocaust. This method was based on not teaching exhibition's audience about historical events and introducing cruelties in theoretical manner. Instead the purpose was to use arts and creativity as means to create multidimensional experience and space for individual self-reflection.

Created in 2011, Miranda has toured in Finland since 2012 reaching over 1 mill visitors. Among Finnish destinations Miranda was on display at the National Museum of Finland 9/2013–3/2014 breaking the audience record: “Museum has for the first time ever given an opportunity to a national minority, the Roma, to tell their own story with the focuses they themselves consider important.”the frames of "Through Miranda’s Eyes" project, funded by Europe for Citizens programme of European Union, Miranda will visit 10 countries and be translated to 20 European languages.

Events and products

In addition to its European Tour, Drom will open a multilingual virtual exhibition portal. The portal will function also as an educational platform and will serve citizens, teachers and students around the world decades after the project.A political initiative by Drom about the exhibition content being integrated in educational programs of each state is travelling together with the exhibition.

A political initiative by Drom about the exhibition content being integrated in educational programsof each state is travelling together with the exhibition.

Following partners are involved in Through Miranda's Eyes project:

Espoo City Cultural Centre (FIN), City of Haparanda (SWE), Dansk Institut för Internationale Studier (DEN), Copenhagen Main Library (DEN), European Parliament (BEL), Benelux Institute (FIN/BEL), Museum of Occupations in Tallinn (EST), Riga Ghetto Museum (LAT), Slovak National Museum/ Sered' Holocaust Museum (SLO), National and University Library in Zagreb (HRV), Holocaust Memorial Center (HUN), The National Holocaust Centre Beth Shalom (UK),Museum of Romani Culture, Brno (CZE), Institute of Romani Culture (ALB), Asociatia Tikvah (ROM), Latin Art Gallery (CZE), European Roma and Travellers Forum ERTF (FRA), Documentation and Cultural Center of German Sinti and Roma (DEU), Museum del Holocausto in Buenos Aires (ARG), Ukrainian Center for Holocaust Studies (UKR), Finnish Institute in St. Petersburg (RUS), Anne Frank Foundation (NET), The Archive of the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum (POL), Gedenkstätte für die Bonner Opfer des Nationalsozialismus, An der Synagogee. V. (DEU), The Ethnological Archive of the Museum of Ethnography (HUN), The Archive of National Library (AUS), Memorial Center Camp, Westerbork (NLD), Photo Archives of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USA), Bundesarchiv-Federal Archives (DEU),Landelijke Sinti Organisatie (NLD), Bildagentur bpk (DEU), Museum of Pietarsaari (FIN).
The project is supported by EU’s Europe for Citizens programme, Arts Promotion Centre Finland, Swedish Cultural Fund, The Nordic Culture Fund, Finnish-Danish cultural Fund, Finnish-Norwegian cultural fond, Finnish-Icelandic cultural fond and Otto Malmi Foundation.

In cooperation with