In honor of its centennial, YIVO presents three landmark exhibitions that illuminate the extraordinary stories preserved in its world-renowned collections.

Co-presented by YIVO and The Jewish Board, this exhibition details the story of the National Desertion Bureau with never-before-seen records, documents, and photographs from the organization’s voluminous archives. (2024)

This exhibition explores Morris Katz’s background, art, and his unique creative process. (2024)

This exhibit tells the story of Yiddish in Ottoman-ruled and British-Mandate Palestine and details the changing attitudes toward the language on the parts of the different Jewish communities there. It features rare publications created by Palestinian Yiddishists involved in an internal Jewish language war. (2023)

This exhibition is sourced with artifacts and documents from the archives of the United Nations and the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, and draws upon the expertise of the Center for the Study of the Holocaust, Genocide, and Crimes Against Humanity at the Graduate Center—CUNY. (2023)

This exhibit explores the evolving story of Jews and cannabis, from the bible to Jewish contributions in the realms of science, counterculture, legalization, and business. (2022)

This exhibit features rare, vintage Yiddish typewriters, as well as original typescripts by dozens of Yiddish writers. (2019)

The immigration quotas of 1921 and 1924 virtually shut down Jewish immigration to the United States. This exhibit provides a selection of Yiddish cartoonists’ furious responses. (2019)

This exhibit tells the story of Jews’ relationship to the universe, through the collections of YIVO and the Center for Jewish History partners. (2018)

Smuggled out of Nazi hands and secretly buried in the Vilna Ghetto, these rare books, letters, manuscripts, and other documents would not have survived if not for the courage of the Paper Brigade. (2017)

Newly discovered rare and unpublished works, thought to have been destroyed during the Holocaust, represent the collective memory and cultural history of Eastern European and Russian Jews. (2017)

Yiddish children’s books contain some of the most stunning illustrations in the world of Jewish books. These works, part of YIVO’s Yidishe kinder exhibit, reveal the creativity of Yiddish artists. (2017)

From children’s storybooks to magazines, from school textbooks to limericks, come and see the artifacts of the life kids lived in Yiddish before World War II. (2017)

This exhibit explores the Strashun Library, a major collection stolen by the Nazis from Vilna and found in Germany after the war. (2017)

An exhibition in honor of Sholem Aleichem’s 100th yortsayt, featuring artifacts from the Sholem Aleichem Family Archive. (2016)

Yiddish newspapers and humor magazines contain dozens of caricatures of Yiddish writers, who were indeed major celebrities in the Jewish world. (2016)

Exhibit on the thriving Yiddish theater culture of NYC from the late 19th to mid-20th century. Located at MCNY. (2016)

A massive collection of albums, photographs, and ephemera relating to Jewish involvement in comedy, c. 1860-1970, featuring materials from Drew Friedman's Comedy Jewseum. (2016)

An immersive video art installation based on home movies taken by New York City’s Jewish immigrants during the 1920s and 30s. (2013)

A look at the images, language, and music of the “stage Jew,” a common character in vaudeville a century ago. (2015)

A foray into a lexicon of Yiddish violence, featuring the brawlers of yesteryear. (2015)

Prints and other graphic works by Russian Jewish artist & ethnographer Solomon Yudovin. (2015)

Shades of Red: The Yiddish Left-Wing Press in America, a YIVO exhibition. (2012)

YIVO exhibition on Max Weinreich, YIVO founder and leading scholar. (2012)

Alternate visions for a Jewish homeland: an exhibition on 3 Territorialist organizations. (2011)