Kassel Rosenzweig Professorship goes to curator Felicitas Heimann-Jelinek

With Felicitas Heimann-Jelinek (63), the University of Kassel has gained an internationally recognized and distinguished expert in the study and presentation of Jewish art in history and the present for the professorship. From 1993 to 2011, she served as chief curator for the Jewish Museum of the City of Vienna. In addition, she was involved in numerous exhibitions at other museums and was particularly active in the training and continuing education of curators at Jewish museums. In the context of guest professorships and teaching assignments, Heimann-Jelinek has repeatedly dealt scientifically with questions of the representation of Jewish art, history and identity. She is, among other things, a Board Member of the "Association of Jewish Museums" and a Board Member of the "Rothschild Foundation Europe".

"Ms. Heimann-Jelinek stands for a curatorial practice that does not simply exhibit the history and culture of European Jewry in museums, but also looks with a scholarly eye at the significance of this self-assurance for contemporary Jewish identity," explained Prof. Dr. Michael Mecklenburg, Head of the Department of German Medieval Studies at the University of Kassel and spokesperson for the search committee. "With its appointment this year, the professorship thus also once again forms a living link between the past and the present of Jewish life."

At the University of Kassel, Dr. Heimann-Jelinek will give her inaugural public lecture on "The Feminine Side of God" on May 9 at 6:15 p.m., in the Humanities and Cultural Studies Building, Kurt-Wolters-Strasse 5, Room 0019.

In the coming summer semester, the Rosenzweig professor will lead two events: a lecture on the history and present of Jewish museums and a seminar on developing exhibition concepts for Jewish cultural history (titled "Strong Women"). Unlike many other visiting professorships, offerings by the Franz Rosenzweig Professors are part of the regular course offerings at the University of Kassel.

With this visiting professorship, the University of Kassel commemorates the work and legacy of Franz Rosenzweig (1886-1929), a Jewish philosopher of religion who came from Kassel. It has been awarded by the University of Kassel every summer semester since 1987 and serves to bring to mind the culture of European Jewry, which was largely destroyed by National Socialism, and to engage with the Jewish present.

Contact:

Prof. Dr. Michael Mecklenburg 
University of Kassel
Department of German Medieval Studies
Tel.: 0561 804-7275
E-mail: michael.mecklenburg@uni-kassel.de

Sebastian Mense
University of Kassel
Communication, Press and Public Relations
Tel.: +49 561 804-1961
E-Mail: presse@uni-kassel.de
www.uni-kassel.de