The Hadassah-Brandeis Institute (HBI) develops fresh ways of thinking about Jews and gender worldwide by producing and promoting scholarly research, artistic projects and public engagement.

One of the world's only academic centers of its kind, HBI provides research resources and programs for scholars, students and the public. The Institute publishes books and a journal, convenes international conferences and local programming, and offers competitive grant and internship programs.

Visit our events page to see a roster of our upcoming events and watch past events.

Two hands on a piece of paper, a pen in one hand, in the act of drawing a face of a person with an open mouth and wide eyes.HBI's exhibition, Who Will Draw Our History? Women’s Graphic Narratives of the Holocaust, 1944-1949 at the Kniznick Gallery from January 27 to April 30, 2026, is now closed. With immense gratitude, we congratulate guest curator, Rachel E. Perry, PhD, art historian and past HBI scholar in residence, for her painstaking research and recovery work which has become an important intervention in the fields of art history, visual culture and Holocaust studies, and Olivia Baldwin, the Rosalie and Jim Shane Curator & Arts Coordinator, Kniznick Gallery, for her tremendous support and skilled stewardship of this exhibition. Please view HBI's Arts Program for more about this historic exhibition, its cosponsors, supporters, volunteer docents, and more. 

Image: Helmar Lerski (1871–1956), "Hände einer Graphikerin (Lea Grundig)", Ca. 1944.  Courtesy of Galerie Berinson, Berlin.

Upcoming Events

June 2

Thank you for joining HBI at our many seminars, Conversations programs, art exhibitions, and more this year. We look forward to sharing engaging and thought-provoking programs about Jews and gender with you again in the fall.

Top, Text: Meet the student docents, WHO WILL DRAW OUR HISTORY? WOMEN’S GRAPHIC NARRATIVES OF THE HOLOCAUST, 1944-1949. Below: eight photos of individual students.

The Student Docent program for the HBI exhibition in the Brandeis Kniznick Gallery, Who Will Draw Our History? Women’s Graphic Narratives of the Holocaust, 1944-1949, gives students opportunities to assist in all aspects of mounting and presenting an art exhibition. Student docents have helped with publicity, captioning, labels, framing, hanging art, staffing the gallery and giving tours. 

“I've always supported HBI because we all know history, but not herstory. We transmit the survival of Jewish women to each generation in the stories we tell. Through previously untold narratives, HBI elevates the experiences of Jewish women all over the world, allowing us to better understand one another.”

Debs Weinberg, HBI Board of Advisors Chair Emerita