Women. Stories of Women who have Influenced the World.

A Biographical Exhibition at the Jewish Museum in Rome Dedicated to the Protagonists of Women’s History and the Memory of the Shoah.

On the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War (8 May 1945), the Jewish Museum of Rome is hosting, from 21 May to 1 September 2025, the biographical exhibition “Women. Stories of women who influenced the world’, realised in cooperation with the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Rome, the Slovak Institute and the Museum of Jewish Culture in Bratislava.

The exhibition, curated by Michal Vanek and by Olga Melasecchi, Lia Toaff and Michelle Zarfati, stems from a project partly presented in November at the Slovak Embassy in Rome with a focus on female figures who survived the Shoah, and now comes in a new layout and with new protagonists, offering a powerful visual narrative about the women who, with their voice, their intelligence and their courage, left a profound mark during the 20th century.

Through biographies and images, the exhibition traces a path through the modern history of the feminist movement, highlighting the progress – often achieved only in recent times – in the recognition of women’s rights in the social, political and cultural spheres. In this context, the stories of Italian Jewish women who, in their respective fields – from science to art, from fashion to culture – have had a significant international impact will also be told. The selection, while not exhaustive, aims to offer a representative cross-section of extraordinary figures, capable of inspiring and stimulating a collective reflection on the role of women in the construction of our society.

One of the most moving moments of the exhibition was the projection of a video-message by Senator Liliana Segre, an emblematic figure of historical memory and civil courage, and the protagonist of one of the exhibition panels. Alongside her speech, a video message was also broadcast by Professor Ruzena Bajcszy, 92 years old, internationally renowned for her extraordinary contributions to scientific research, particularly in the fields of computer science and robotics. The entire exhibition took the form of a heartfelt tribute to women who have made history, but also an opportunity to reflect on the present and future of gender equality, at a time when the memory of the past is called upon to illuminate the path of change.