The Los Angeles-based Wende Museum is a non-profit organization dedicated to acquiring, preserving, and enabling access to materials of Cold War-era Eastern Europe. The collection encompasses artifacts and archives from all former Warsaw Pact states and emphasizes life in the Soviet Union and East Germany. Since its establishment in 2002, the Museum has provided a unique way for students, scholars, journalists and political observers to investigate experiences and cultural expressions under communist rule. The Wende Museum’s own research—including innovative exhibitions and community outreach efforts—provides a nuanced exploration of a society that was largely dismantled in a few short years.

The Museum offers a comprehensive collection of over 100,000 objects and archival materials, including household consumer products, clothing, folk art, diaries and scrapbooks, political iconography, photo albums, posters, films, textbooks, paintings, sports awards and certificates and children’s toys.

Among the artifacts in the collection is a 2.6 ton segment of the Berlin Wall painted by renowned wall artist Thierry Noir. One recent donation from a former East German border guard includes a wealth of official documentation describing the construction and maintenance of the Berlin Wall. Also included are facial recognition systems used on the eastern side of the Checkpoint Charlie border crossing, allowing exploration of this landmark from a less familiar perspective. To supplement its extensive collections, the Museum has embarked upon its Historical Witness Project, which aims to capture the oral and written testimony of those who produced, consumed, manipulated and sometimes suppressed the physical record of the Eastern Bloc.

In the early Nineties, the Cold War came to a dramatic end. Since then, historical landmarks have been torn down, statues have been vandalized and documents have been destroyed throughout Eastern Europe. The Wende Museum is committed to ensuring the survival of threatened artifacts in order to provide a more comprehensive investigation of this pivotal period that continues to influence our world.

The Wende has played a central role in the preservation of artifacts that might otherwise have been lost forever. We continue to grow, making important acquisitions, mounting special exhibitions, and expanding. We welcome your support, and involvement in shaping the Museum’s future and ensuring its continued success.

Major support for The Wende Museum and Archive of the Cold War is generously provided by The Arcadia Fund.