Undercurrents II: Archives and the Making of Soviet Jewish Identity

Undercurrents II: Archives and the Making of Soviet Jewish Identity tells the story of how an underground community of dissident publishers ignited a cultural revival among Soviet Jews that spread around the world. This exhibition displays Soviet Jewish samizdat (self-published work), letters, art, and ephemera from the private archive of a leader of the Soviet Jewish underground in the 1980s. These materials advance our understanding of how this persecuted minority group transformed into a global social movement, how the Soviet Union’s government attempted to prevent this transformation, and how Western powers like the United States sought to support the Soviet Jews and their plight.

Undercurrents II: Archives and the Making of Soviet Jewish Identity is generously supported by Arcadia, the Koum Foundation, and Alexander Smukler.