Erica Lehrer is an

anthropologist An anthropologist is a scientist engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropologists study aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms, values ...

curator A curator (from , meaning 'to take care') is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the particular ins ...

, and academic specializing in post-

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

Jewish culture,

museum studies Museology (also called museum studies or museum science) is the study of museums. It explores the history of museums and their role in society, as well as the activities they engage in, including curating, preservation, public programming, and ed ...

, ethnography, and public scholarship. She is associate professor of History and Sociology/Anthropology at

Concordia University Concordia University () is a Public university, public English-language research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College (Montreal), Loyola College and Sir George Williams Universit ...

, where she holds a

Canada Research Chair Canada Research Chair (CRC) is a title given to certain Canadian university research professors by the Canada Research Chairs Program. Program goals The Canada Research Chair program was established in 2000 as a part of the Government of Canada ...

in Museum and Heritage Studies and serves as director of the Curating and Public Scholarship Lab at Concordia University.

Education

She has received a B.A. from

Grinnell College Grinnell College ( ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1846 when a group of Congregationalism in the United States, Congregationalis ...

and M.A. and PhD degrees from the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

Career

In 2013, Lehrer curated "Souvenir, Talisman, Toy," an ethnographic exhibition of historical and contemporary Polish-made figurines depicting Jews (including the modern antisemitic

Jew with a coin The Jew with a coin (, also little Jew (), or lucky Jew ()) is a good-luck charm in Poland, where images or figurines of the character, usually accompanied by a proverb, are said to bring good fortune, particularly financially. The motif was f ...

figurines), at the Ethnographic Museum of Kraków. A smaller selection of objects and media from the exhibit was on display from July 28 – August 30, 2013, at the Galicia Jewish Museum.Why Are the Poles Amassing Jewish Figurines?
Haaretz, Benny Mer, 20 November 2014Poland's mantelpiece Jews
The JC, 4 December 2014Cała, Alina. "„Pamiątka, Zabawka, Talizman/Souvenir, Talisman, Toy”(wystawa w Muzeum Etnograficznym w Krakowie, 2013 rok, kuratorka: Erica Lehrer)." Studia Litteraria et Historica 3-4 (2015): 265-271.
/ref> In 2016, she curated a new exhibition at the Galicia Jewish Museum titled "A Single Point Perspective/Punkt Zbiezny."

Personal life and family

Lehrer's uncle was physicist Frederick Reif, who was married to

Mildred Dresselhaus Mildred Spiewak Dresselhaus''Mildred Dresselhaus'' was elected in 197 ...

. Her mother, Liane Reif-Lehrer, was a

Holocaust survivor Holocaust survivors are people who survived the Holocaust, defined as the persecution and attempted annihilation of the Jews by Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, its collaborators before and during World War II ...

and professor at

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is the third oldest medical school in the Un ...

. Her brother, Damon Lehrer, is a children's book author.

Awards

*Canada Research Chair in Museum and Heritage Studies *Canada Research Chair in Post-Conflict Memory, Ethnography and Museology *Hazel D. Cole Fellowship in Jewish Studies, University of Washington *Illinois Humanities Post-Doctoral Fellowship, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Publications

"Curatorial Dreams: Critics Imagine Exhibitions"
McGill-Queen's University Press, 2016,
"Jewish Space in Contemporary Poland"
Indiana University Press, 2015,
''Na szczęście to Żyd / Lucky Jews: Poland's Jewish Figurines''
Ha!art Press, 2014,
''Jewish Poland Revisited: Heritage Tourism in Unquiet Places''
Indiana University Press, 2013, *co-editor
''Curating Difficult Knowledge: Violent Pasts in Public Places''
Palgrave Macmillan, 2011,

References

External links

*
The Curating and Public Scholarship LabSouvenir, Talisman, Toy exhibition website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lehrer, Erica American anthropologists Canada Research Chairs Academic staff of Concordia University Grinnell College alumni Living people University of Michigan alumni American women anthropologists American women academics 21st-century American women Date of birth missing (living people)