Change of Homes
from 30. 11. 2016
One of the significant events that affected the lives of many people in Central Europe after the Second World War was the forced displacement of various population groups as a result of political decisions. Such European post-war movements also included events that changed the ethnic composition of the post-war Czechoslovak Republic: expulsion of Germans, deportation of Hungarians from Slovakia to the Czech lands, repatriation of Slovaks and Czechs from abroad, exchange of population between Czechoslovakia and Hungary. The exhibition presents a picture of the times – parallel fates of various population groups who became victims of these events. Through authentic documents, material evidence and witness statements, combined with the reconstruction of German, Hungarian and Slovak homes, the exhibition follows the course of events and shows how political decisions affected individual life paths and fates of population groups. The installation presents the living conditions of families, individual stations and events during forced travel and the hardships resulting from the change of homes.