INDIANAPOLIS--A new exhibit that opens this weekend at the Indiana Historical Society honors the life of Holocaust survivor Eva Kor.
It is called “Eva Kor from Auschwitz to Indiana.” It tells the story of how Kor survived Auschwitz as a child and the experiments of Dr. Josef Mengele, who is known for performing experiments on prisoners. He was also a member of the team of doctors who selected victims to be killed in gas chambers.
“We’ll have a biographical exhibit about her that includes a hologram that you can talk and interact with. We’ll also have a virtual reality experience where you can take a tour of Auschwitz with Eva,” said Jody Blankenship, president and CEO of the Indiana Historical Society (IHS).
Kor was inducted into the “Indiana Living Legends” exhibit at IHS before she died in 2019.
“Since then, her son, Alex, has chosen the Indiana Historical Society as a repository for his mother’s records. As we’ve gotten these records in, we thought, ‘This is an incredible story.’ But do we really know her whole story? Can we put that into context?,” said Blankenship.
Blankenship says the exhibit will show how Kor’s life and legacy with the purpose of teaching people about the horrors of the Holocaust, the realities of antisemitism, and the power that one person has to make a change.
“I think you are going to come see that exhibit and you’ll find that you only knew a little bit of the story. It will inspire you so much more than you had been before with the amazing things that she did,” said Blankenship.
The exhibit opens on March 12 and will be open through January 2024.
On July 4, 2019, Kor died at the age of 85. She also founded the CANDLES Holocaust Museum and Education Center (“Children of Auschwitz Nazi Deadly Lab Experiments Survivors”) in Terre Haute.
A second exhibit opening at IHS is called “Dimensions in Testimony.” That is also opening on March 12 and running through January 2024. It is being brought to IHS in partnership with CANDLES.
