National Heritage Institute, Ostrava

19.00–19.15 “Na útěku” (On the Run) – tragic fate of David Weinstein’s family

Introduction by the author of the documentary movie about a tragic fate of a family of a Jewish salesman David Weinstein, which reflects the dramatic and troubled history of the 20^th century.

19.15–20.30 Screening of a documentary movie “Na útěku” (On the Run)

Perhaps everyone in Opava and around knows the monumental building of Breda & Weinstein department store from the First Republic era. However, very little is known about a Jewish merchant David Weinsten, who had this architectural icon built. And that is very unfortunate especially when thinking about importance of this personality in both social and economic spheres. It was racial ideology and the Second World War that had major impact on Weinstein’s family fate.

The documentary film by Václav Hájek deals with the tragic fate of a family that belonged to a business elite with a supraregional reach. It proves how historical events caused by human hate were able to bury grand works and dreams into the ground including lives of the people related. They created and lived among us here.

During searching for fates of individual family members the author of the movie went to shoot in Israel and in Norway, where David Weinstein’s son, Robert, sought asylum before the Nazis.

Discussion with the author of the movie follows the screening.

21.00–22.00

Guided tour of the current expo “New architecture between centres and peripheries or Architecture of the First Czechoslovak Republic on the border of Moravia and Silesia” with a curator of the expo Martin Strakoš

22.30–23.30

Guided tour of the current expo “New architecture between centres and peripheries or Architecture of the First Czechoslovak Republic on the border of Moravia and Silesia” with a curator of the expo Martin Strakoš

The goal of the expo is to present great architectural pieces of the region from the period between 1918 and 1938, from which many are widely remembered. Using historic photos, the expo presents the most important works of the period including sacral buildings, town halls, administrative palaces, housing estates, cultural, sport and school facilities, urbanism and industrial architecture from the point of view of individual architectural types.