Exhibition

Kaleidoscope: Children of the Cold War

Her Shoes

Upheavals

World events and instability in the living environment penetrate children’s reality through news and the reactions of the adults around them. Revolutions, protests, and wars make their way into children’s plays and affect their worldview. Some escape from the ambiguity and turmoil of daily life by retreating into their own imaginary worlds.

Events that shake our everyday lives are often well remembered. Here, too, memories tend to entail routine or private moments in which the child’s attention is focused on everyday objects and events. Children play, kick a ball or watch TV while society around them is in turmoil.

With the global pandemic and the worsening environmental crisis, children are again during life-changing events. They observe and follow the conversations, emotions, and practices of adults, but also provide their own interpretations of their surroundings and build up their own realities.

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