The Montreal Holocaust Museum Is Moving & Getting Hologram Survivor Testimony

The Montreal Holocaust Museum (MHM) will be moving into a new building on boulevard Saint-Laurent in the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough in 2025. As part of the $80 million upgrade, the new building will include interactive hologram technology, classrooms, a 150-seat auditorium and a memorial garden.

The MHM held an architectural contest last year in order to encourage creative and distinctive design for the new space. "It's really going to be a brand new building from the ground up and an incredible opportunity to create something that's architecturally impressive and environmentally safe," said Sarah Fogg, Head of Communications, Marketing and PR for the MHM.

The upgraded museum will feature Dimensions In Testimony holographic technology: a USC Shoah Foundation invention to preserve the testimonies of Holocaust survivors in an interactive display. In partnership with the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, the MHM has filmed the project's first French-language testimony.

"The filming process was incredibly tough for the survivor. She was asked hundreds and hundreds of questions. These are questions that the visitors can ask the hologram. So it obviously won't be the same as interacting with a real survivor but it'll be as close as we can get," Fogg said.

The new building will also have more space for permanent and temporary exhibits. Currently, the MHM is able to display only 400 objects of their 13,000 object collection at a time. Along with added room for their permanent exhibit, the MHM hopes to display temporary Holocaust exhibits from around the world, as well as exhibits highlighting other genocides.

“At a time marked by mounting antisemitism, racism, and discrimination against minorities, Holocaust education remains essential to foster awareness and a respect for diversity among citizens," said Daniel Amar, Executive Director of the MHM, in a recent press release. "For this reason, and following the example of major cities around the world, Montreal is creating a space to promote historical awareness and build partnerships with communities that are victims of genocide, racism, and persecution.”

Of the 40,000 Holocaust survivors who settled in Canada, 9,000 chose to rebuild their lives in Montreal.