Tale of two pandemics on display

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This article was published 24/03/2023 (966 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A free, interactive exhibit in downtown Winnipeg tells a tale of two pandemics.

“Virus: Making & Breaking the Pandemic” curates historical accounts, documents and newspaper archives to draw parallels between society’s response to the Spanish Influenza of 1918 and the recent battle with COVID-19.

“It our perspective of how, after 100 years, we’ve come full circle,” said Cindy Tugwell, executive director of Heritage Winnipeg, which commissioned the project.

From mask mandates and quarantines to misinformation and protests, the two pandemics bear similar features. During both events, health-care systems felt enormous strain, vulnerable populations reported mass casualties, charlatans offered miracle cures, and communities banded together.

It’s a tale as old as time, Tugwell said Friday, speaking from the Millennium Centre (389 Main St.), where the exhibit will remain open until March 31.

“These are things that affected absolutely everyone in the world and could happen again. Maybe there were lessons learned that we can think about, and plan a little bit better (for the future).”

Last spring, Heritage Winnipeg approached local design company Pattern Interactive to develop the exhibit. The finished product includes a series of written displays, timelines, photographs and videos depicting modern and historical events.

The comparison is meant to challenge the perceived novelty of the novel coronavirus, pointing out pandemic events happen time and again, yet the public response remains largely unchanged.

“I would like the public to rethink their perspective on the pandemic. If they can do that, then we have done a good job,” said Jeremy Choy, Pattern owner and project lead.

“I want people to come with their own opinions and see this information, and then perhaps question their original (understanding of the pandemic).”

The exhibit launched Friday, opening its doors to some 60 high school students.

“The feedback we got from the students was they gained a better understanding of what dealing with a pandemic might have been like 100 years ago without immunizations,” Tugwell said.

A virtual version launches online Saturday.

Both exhibits contain the same content, but given the numerous lockdowns over the past two years, Heritage Winnipeg felt it was important to have an in-person display, Tugwell said.

The federal government provided $200,000 to fund the project. The Free Press also offered support, opening its archives and allowing the Pattern team to draw on more 150 years of newspaper reports.

tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca

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