While many may be familiar with Anne Frank's story, "Anne Frank The Exhibition" at the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry (MSI), invites visitors to experience her life in a new way.
The exhibit features a full-scale recreation of the Secret Annex, where Anne Frank, her family and four others lived while hiding from Nazi persecution for more than two years.
Executive Director of the Anne Frank House Ronald Leopold says it's different from the museum in Amsterdam.
"What we've done here is re-create this annex, this hiding place but have it furnished," he said. "When you enter this space, it felt for me like this is really the hiding place, with personal items that tell a story, personal items that tell you what it means to go into hiding."
John Halpern
The exhibition includes more than 130 items, like Anne Frank's first photo album and a bike that belonged to her boyfriend Peter van Pels, one of the eight people hiding in the annex.
Leopold says he hopes the exhibit shows visitors, especially students and youth, that Anne Frank's story is still as impactful today as it was when her diary was first published in 1947.
"We live in a world that needs Anne Frank's words more than ever," he said. "My hope is that these present and future generations will finally create a better world because they knew what has happened in the past."
The MSI is the first museum to receive the exhibit. MSI Executive Director and CEO Chevy Humphrey says she knew it had to come to Chicago after she first saw it in New York.
Anne Frank's photo album
Ray van der Bas
"Humanity and science are interconnected," she said. "Humanities is the why, and science is the how. Without having humanity first, you can't know how to develop science to improve our lives."
She says the exhibit makes it easier for people to see a version of the Anne Frank house who may not be able to make it to Amsterdam, especially students.
"We want people to have that same opportunity and that same access even though it's out of reach," she said. "Many of our school children haven't left South Chicago, so we want to make sure we bring them experiences that other people are able to engage in."
"Anne Frank The Exhibition" is a presentation of the Anne Frank House. It opens May 1 and is on display through early 2027.
