In search of the right “vibe”: Socialization in (trans)national memory and visual cultures and its impact on the perception of Holocaust exhibitions in Poland and Germany

The present moment marks a generational threshold in the collective memory of World War II. First, regarding this period, we are in transition from the realm of “communicative memory” to that of “cultural memory.” Second, the globalization process has an immense impact on how we imagine the past. How do these developments influence young people’s perception of historical exhibitions? The article discusses the results of a qualitative audience research realized in three museums in Poland and Germany dedicated to people who aided Jews during the Holocaust: the Tadeusz Pankiewicz’s Pharmacy in Krakow, the Ulma Museum in Markowa, and the Museum Otto Weidt in Berlin. The objective of the study, conducted among local and international students, was to capture possible differences in perceptual and conceptual priming between young adults socialized in different (national) memory cultures and to analyze how these narrative and visual templates influence their reading and viewing of the exhibitions.