Disturbing Pasts: Memories, Controversies and Creativity

This themed issue of the Open Arts Journal, ‘Disturbing pasts: Memories, controversies and creativity’, brings together a range of artists, curators, policy-makers and academics from around the world, who explore creative engagements with controversial and traumatic pasts in art practice, curating and museums. The material is presented in three parts: ‘Difficult Pasts and Public Space’ (writings on historical issues and museums), ‘Visual Investigations’ (artists’ statements and criticism), and ‘Collaborations’ (visual analysis and artist-scholar pairings of writings and original artworks). This collection was developed through a two-year international research project led by Leon Wainwright, which involved three consortia of researchers from universities throughout Europe, and focused on a major public event at the Museum of Ethnology Vienna/Weltmuseum, Wien (November 2011). The project is funded by HERA (Humanities in the European Research Area, the European Science Foundation)

After the expulsions: the lost German Heimat in memory, monuments and museums

This comparative thesis explores how museums and monuments in postwar east and west Germany commemorate the eastern territories that were lost after 1945. I focus on the concept of Heimat which spans aesthetics and politics, psychological and political identity and emerges from a condition of loss, thus it features highly in my attempt to understand the development and current state of memorialisation. The centrality of the notion of Heimat in expellee memorialisation is a field as yet little explored in research on the expulsions, particularly in east Germany. Following chapters on the historical context, Heimat, and cultural memory, Chapter Three discusses monuments erected between 1947 and 1989 by expellees who resettled in West Germany which are used to mourn, replace, reflect on and revere the old Heimat. I compare post-unification west and east German memorials, discussing key differences resulting from the former taboo on expellee commemoration in East Germany. I additionally examine changing sites of memory, memorials that illustrate a shifting integration process and investigate the use of symbolism. Chapter Four considers the interaction between eyewitnesses, historians and curators in the portrayal of history in museums and Heimatstuben at Görlitz, Greifswald, Lüneburg, Regensburg, Molfsee, Gehren, Rendsburg and Altenburg, in addition to the Altvaterturm in Thuringia. Chapter Five discusses the contentious Berlin Stiftung Flucht Vertreibung Versöhnung Centre, first mooted in 1999 by the Bund der Vertriebenen as a Centre against Expulsions. The tension between ‘German victims’ and ‘victims of the Germans’ is a recurring theme in this thesis. My conclusions highlight how memorialisation is framed clearly within the contemporary socio-political context, demonstrate the durability and flexibility of the term Heimat and illustrate the resilience of the regard for the lost territories, not only for expellees; the idea of the German East persists in German cultural memory

The impact of the communist heritage on the destination image perceived by western tourists. The case study of Poland and Bulgaria

Over recent years the importance of destination image on tourists’ decision-making process has been increasingly analysed as an important factor. However, the researches into this topic are still maturing. As noted previously, the tourism industry in the Post-Soviet countries has not been a subject of great interest from scholars. However, the uniqueness of the cultural and historical background of these countries contributes to tourism flows which are important to explore. Therefore, this dissertation examines the impact of the communist heritage on the destination image perceived by foreign consumers, focusing on two the post-communist countries – Bulgaria and Poland, which have a long history connected to communism due to Soviet occupation in the years between 1945 and 1991. Drawing on theories of tourists’ perceptions, heritage tourism, and destination image conceptualization, an empirical study was conducted using mixed methods. The semi-structured questionnaires with mixed questions (open-ended questions, semantic, Likert scale) were distributed online (via Facebook, Viber, and e-mail) to Western tourists. The findings of this research showed that the respondents in both sampling groups had positive perceptions about the overall destination image of each post-Soviet country. However, regarding the communist heritage aspect, while Poland is significantly recognized as a cultural and heritage destination, Bulgaria's best-perceived elements as a destination, are its attractive scenery/natural landscape and good weather. The findings in the study contribute to a clearer understanding of the communist heritage of the post-Soviet states by empirically evaluating the main characteristics of Poland's and Bulgaria's destination image. Furthermore, significant implications for tourism managers and researchers are highlighted, including defining greater promotional endeavours that would increase Poland's and Bulgaria's brand recognition and value, and the development of new, more satisfactory tourist products.Nos últimos anos, a importância da imagem de destino no processo de tomada de decisões dos turistas tem sido cada vez mais analisada como um fator importante. No entanto, as pesquisas sobre este assunto ainda estão em desenvolvimento. Como observado anteriormente, a indústria do turismo nos países pós-soviéticos não tem sido objeto de grande interesse por parte dos académicos. No entanto, a singularidade do contexto cultural e histórico desses países contribui para os fluxos de turismo que são importantes para explorar. Portanto, esta dissertação examina o impacto da herança comunista na imagem de destino percebida pelos consumidores estrangeiros, concentrando-se em dois países pós-comunistas - Bulgária e Polônia, que têm uma longa história ligada ao comunismo devido à ocupação soviética nos anos entre 1945 e 1945. e 1991. Com base nas teorias de identidade de destino e percepção de imagem de destino, foi conduzido um estudo empírico usando métodos mistos. Os questionários semi-estruturados com questões mistas (questões abertas, semânticas, escala Likert) foram distribuídos on-line (via Facebook, Viber e e-mail) para visitantes ocidentais. Os resultados desta pesquisa mostraram que os turistas estrangeiros em ambos os grupos de amostragem tiveram percepções positivas sobre a imagem geral de destino de cada uma dessas repúblicas pós-soviéticas. No entanto, em relação ao aspecto do património comunista, embora a Polónia seja significativamente reconhecida como um destino cultural e patrimonial, os elementos mais bem vistos pela Bulgária como destino são os seus cenários atrativos / paisagem natural e o clima. Destacam-se implicações significativas para os gestores e investigadores do turismo, incluindo a definição de maiores esforços promocionais que aumentem o reconhecimento e o valor da marca da Polónia e da Bulgária, juntamente com o desenvolvimento de novos productos e serviços de turismo que sejam satisfatórios. As descobertas do estudo contribuem para uma compreensão mais clara da herança comunista dos estados pós-soviéticos, avaliando empiricamente as principais características da imagem de destino da Polônia e da Bulgária

Forced displacements : a European History

The book is part of the European project SO-CLOSE. Using multiple case studies, this book shows the historical centrality in contemporary Europe of the phenomenon of forced migration and displacement due to war, political persecution, or reasons such as gender identity. These case studies are accompanied by a study on the important role of ethnic cleansing in driving forced displacement in 20th-century Europe, written by the leading expert on refugee history in Europe, Philipp Ther, member of the SO-CLOSE Advisory Board. What we propose in this book is a sort of incomplete panorama that will help to resituate a phenomenon that is both contemporary and historical in historical narrative

World Multidisciplinary Civil Engineering- Architecture- Urban Planning symposium

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all 900+ submissions by 600+ participants of WMCAUS 2018 from 60+ different countries all over the world for their interests and contributions in WMCAUS 2018. We wish you enjoy the World Multidisciplinary Civil Engineering-Architecture-Urban Planning Symposium – WMCAUS 2018 and have a pleasant stay in the city of romance Prague. We hope to see you again during next event WMCAUS 2019 which will be held in Prague (Czech Republic) approximately in the similar period