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Dr Avril Alba

BA(Hons)/BMus (Adelaide), MTS (Harvard), PhD (Sydney)
Roth Lecturer in Holocaust Studies and Jewish Civilisation
Room 539, Brennan MacCallum Building A18

+61 2 9351 3876

Prior to joining the Department of Hebrew, Biblical and Jewish Studies in 2012, Avril was the Education Director at the Sydney Jewish Museum where she also served as the Project Director/Curator for the refurbishment of the museum’s permanent exhibition Culture and Continuity: Journey through Judaism. Her doctoral thesis, currently under preparation for publication as book-length monograph, explored the largely unexamined topic of museums as sacred spaces. At present, Avril is undertaking research into Holocaust memory in its broader context and in particular the efficacy of this memory in the Australian public sphere. Avril welcomes enquiries from prospective Honours, Masters and PhD students in these and related areas.

Research areas

  • Holocaust history, memory and representation
  • Museums and memorials
  • Modern Jewish history
  • Jewish theology/ post Holocaust theology

Current projects

Avril is continuing her research into Holocaust museums, memorials and commemoration through a collaborative project that will seek to ascertain the influence and reach of Holocaust memory in the Australian context. The scope of the research will include a comparative study of the commemorative strategies of ethnic and cultural groups that have suffered racist persecution and/or genocide, and in particular the commemorative initiatives of indigenous Australians.

Selected publications

Book chapters

  • ‘Displaying the Sacred: Australian Holocaust Memorials in Public Life’ in Tom Lawson & James Jordan (eds), Holocaust Memory in Australia, London: Vallentine Mitchell, 2008, pp. 128-147.

Articles in peer-reviewed journals

  • ‘Displaying the Sacred: Australian Holocaust Memorials in Public Life’, in Holocaust Studies: A Journal of Culture and History, Vol 13, 2/3, 2007, pp. 151-172.
  • ‘Integrity and Relevance: Shaping Holocaust Memory at the Sydney Jewish Museum’, in Judaism: A Quarterly Journal of Jewish Life and Thought, Vol 54, 1/2, 2005, pp. 108-115.

General publications

  • ‘Teaching History and Teaching Ethics: New Perspectives in Holocaust Education’, Teaching History: Journal of the History Teachers’ Association of NSW, Vol 39, 2 (2005), pp 37-41.
  • ‘Museums as Sites of History: Exploring the Sydney Jewish Museum’, Teaching History: Journal of the History Teachers’ Association of NSW, Vol 38, 4 (2004), pp 34-37.
  • ‘After Such Knowledge: Representation and Responsibility’, METRO Magazine: Australian Screen Education, Winter, 35 (2004), pp. 22-26.
  • Museum catalogue essays including A Short Guide to Jewish Festivals and Traditions, Children’s Memorial, Sydney Jewish Museum catalogue (sections) and Yearbook 2010-11.
  • Opinion Editorial, The Australian Jewish News, 19 July 2010, 8 Nov 2010, 17 Jan 2011.

Areas of teaching and research supervision

Teaching

  • JCTC 2605 From Emancipation to the Holocaust
  • JCTC 2606 The Holocaust: History and Aftermath
  • JCTC 6915 Contemporary Responses to the Holocaust

Supervision

  • Holocaust memoir and literature

Conference activity

  • ‘When Everything Old is New Again’, Uncovering Amalek at Yad Vashem’, Old New Jews: Jewish Identity in the 21st Century, Australian Association for Jewish Studies Conference, Monash University, 12-13 February 2012.
  • ‘‘Negative Epiphany’: From Sinai to Washington’, The Politics of Memory, Monash University, 5-6 June 2011.
  • ‘The Survivor and the Space: Uncovering the Sacred at the Sydney Jewish Museum’, Aftermath: Holocaust Survivors in Australia, Monash University, 14-15 March 2010.
  • ‘Survivors at the Sydney Jewish Museum’, Rebuilding Lives: Holocaust Survivors in Australia, State Library of NSW, 17 March 2010.
  • ‘People of the ‘Look’: Thinking about Jewish Museums’, Australian Association of Jewish Studies Conference, UNSW, 15-16 February 2009.
  • ‘Holocaust Museums: Sacred Memory in Secular Space’, First International Graduate Student Conference on Holocaust and Genocide, Strassler Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, Clark University, 23-26 April, 2009.
  • Keynote Speaker: ‘The Project’, Extension History Symposium, Historic Houses Trust NSW, 23 October 2009.

Other professional contributions

  • Avril continues to serve as an advisor to the Sydney Jewish Museum for current exhibition and education projects as well as commemorative initiatives.
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