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Daniel Hawkins, RR, 2009 will be included in the exhibit A Journey of Healing, Hope and Humanity
In RR, 2009 an 8-foot segment of railroad track – including gravel, railroad ties, and steel rails – is set between two vertical panes of two-way mirrored plexiglas.
RR is the embodiment of paradoxical emotions, narratives, and ways of perceiving the world — and this contradiction opens a space where we can reflect on how we got here, where we’re headed, and what illusions and promises we may be riding at this very moment. 
Los Angeles based artist Daniel Hawkins frequently combines the deliberate undertaking of Sisyphean tasks with explorations of the aesthetics of plausible deniability.

Exhibition:
Violins of Hope
, A Journey of Heroism, Healing and Humanity

NOW – MARCH 13th

TUESDAYS – SATURDAYS, 1-5pm

An exhibition featuring the Violins of Hope will be open (and free) to the public at the Veterans Gallery at the Veterans Building in San Francisco. The violins share the stories of Jewish resistance fighters and tales of loss and reunification following the war.

The exhibition will showcase a selection of approximately 20 violins from the collection of over 70 that were played by Jewish musicians during the Holocaust. Amnon Weinstein began collecting and restoring the violins more than 20 years ago, and the collection is dedicated to the 400 family members he lost in World War II. Since then, the instruments have been played by prominent musicians in venues worldwide, giving voice not only to the owners of the violins, but also to the millions of Jewish people who perished. 

The Violins of Hope exhibition will offer a unique educational opportunity through the Violins of Hope APP which will provide supplemental material and allow the visitor to engage in an intimate musical experience. Expanding on educational materials developed by Facing History & Ourselves whose mission is to help students learn about hatred and bigotry so they can stop them from happening in the future, the exhibition will offer tours and programs for all grades, faith-based organizations, congregations and social justice agencies.

The Veterans Gallery is located in the Veterans Building at 401 Van Ness Ave. Suite 102. 

Click to watch NBC Bay Area’s story on the exhibition, January 22, 2020

For information regarding school visits and docent tours for your group, please contact: Lisa Coscino lisa.v.coscino@gmail.com

_____________________________________

Curator: Lisa Coscino 

Exhibition Development and Research Assistance: Cindy Morton
Exhibition Development and Design: Sound, Interactive and App: Sara Roberts

The Curatorial Team would like to thank the following for their invaluable research assistance and guidance: The Farkas Center for the Study of the Holocaust in Catholic Schools; JFCS Holocaust Center of San Francisco; UCSF School of Museum Management and James Grymes and the Weinstein Family.

Additional research assistance has been provided by: Peninsula JCC, California History Center, Facing History and Ourselves and Violins of Hope Nashville.

Many thanks to our APP creator, Jim Asnis and to our exhibit designer, Julie Ho Sung

Special thanks to the American Legion War Memorial Commission for hosting the Violins of Hope Exhibit in the Veterans Gallery in the SF Veterans Building, and to Paul Cox and Janice Tong.


Our Sponsors

  • Hewlett 50 Arts Comissions
  • Walter & Elise Haas Fund
  • National Endowment for the Arts
  • The Mervyn L. Brenner Foundation
  • San Mateo County Arts Grants Program
  • Y&H Soda Foundation
  • American Legion
  • Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation
  • Carlstrom Productions
  • Fleishhacker Foundation
  • Hellman Foundation
  • Mercy
  • Kohl Mansion
  • Shenson Foundation
  • The Jewish News
  • Bella Charitable Foundation
  • Kessinger Family Foundation
  • San Mateo Daily Journal

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