New Life Exhibition

Henryk Schönker and his Grandson, Ori

(Photo by Hamutal Davidl)

On May 5, I was in Poland and had the great pleasure of attending the opening of the latest exhibition at the Auschwitz Jewish Center in Oświęcim, which is an affiliate of our Museum. Entitled, New Life, the exhibition is a photographic tribute to Holocaust survivors from Oświęcim, Poland who live in Israel today. The exhibition illustrates the continuation of Jewish life after the Holocaust in the context of those who found a “new life” in Israel.

Through images and testimony, New Life tells the powerful story of the triumph of life in the face of overwhelming devastation.  The exhibition presents 19 contemporary photographs of Jews born in Oświęcim who are now living in Israel with their descendants.  The photographs are accompanied by text panels with personal stories of survival, the subjects’ return to Oświęcim after the Holocaust, and life in Israel. 

A documentary film with former Jewish residents of Oświęcim, along with their children and grandchildren, expressing their feelings about their hometown, Poland, and life in Israel is also featured in the exhibit

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Visitors at the Exhibition 

(Photo curtesy of Auschwitz Jewish Center)