75 Memorial Flames selected for HMDT’s national exhibition
Artworks by groups from across the UK have been selected by an expert panel to mark the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau.
75 Memorial Flames have been chosen to represent each year since the liberation of Auschwitz and will be displayed at an exhibition which will be unveiled at the UK Ceremony for Holocaust Memorial Day 2020.
‘Stand Together in Unity’ by Irena Sendlers Polish School
More than 300 groups from across the country registered to take part in our nationwide project which encourages groups of all kinds to come together to remember the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust.
Memorial Flames have been created in a wide variety of community settings, including schools, craft groups, prisons, faith groups, local businesses and libraries, with participants learning more about the Holocaust before creating a personal response through art.
HMDT’s expert panel which chose the 75 final Memorial Flames included: Sarah Donaldson, arts editor at the Observer; Nick Sharratt, renowned illustrator and author; Kathleen Soriano, Chair of the Liverpool Biennial, and judge on SkyArts Artist of the Year; Anita Peleg, HMDT Trustee and daughter of Naomi Blake, a sculptor and Holocaust survivor; and Olivia Marks-Woldman, Chief Executive of the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust.
Full details and photographs of the selected Memorial Flames will be available on the HMDT website in January.
Memorial Flames which haven’t been selected for the UK exhibition will be included in HMD activities across the country, recognising the fantastic work of participants who captured the theme for HMD 2020: Stand Together.
Sarah Donaldson, arts editor for the Observer, said: ‘The 75 Memorial Flames project is a brilliant project that shows how effective art can be in bringing together people from all walks of life to engage on a particular issue. We’ve seen entries from school children, youth groups, prison inmates, interfaith groups, craft groups, and others, and the quality and diversity of the responses has been really impressive.’
Author and Illustrator, Nick Sharratt, said: ‘It’s more important than ever not to forget the history of the Holocaust, and this exhibition is a fantastic opportunity to ensure that. I’ve been very excited to see how many different interpretations of the brief there are, with each group using the central flame idea and making it their own. The number of different artistic techniques used has been very impressive and I can’t wait to see all the 75 Memorial Flames come together at the UK Ceremony for Holocaust Memorial Day.’
Kathleen Soriano, SkyArts Artist of the Year judge said: ‘What really makes the artworks produced for the 75 Memorial Flames project special, are the remarkable stories of those affected by the Holocaust, which are told through the art itself. Each piece explores something different, from specific individuals who were imprisoned in concentration camps, to people who helped others escape and the theme of Stand Together. To me, the theme of Stand Together means remembering together and that’s what this project is helping to achieve.’
Olivia Marks-Woldman, Chief Executive of Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, said: ‘It is hugely encouraging to have received so many submissions to this project and from so many different types of groups. The project has truly been nationwide and at a time when we know identity-based hostility is increasing, it is heartening to see so many groups and communities come together and pay tribute to those affected by the Holocaust in this way.’
The 75 Memorial Flames project was launched earlier this with the creation of a sculpture by artist and survivor of the Holocaust, Maurice Blik, who was liberated from Bergen-Belsen concentration camp as a child. The project is part of a wider programme of events to enable people to take part in HMD 2020 and learn from the horrors of genocide.
The full list of organisations selected for the national exhibition are:
1st Redditch Girls’ Brigade
Alva Academy (Arty Stuff)
Arena Academy – Year 8 – CORE Education Trust
AVOW
Belmont Castle Academy
Bennett Memorial School
Bishop Martin C of E School
Bournemouth School
Brentwood Ursuline Convent High School
Brighton Jewish Arts Society
Brownhills School
Crafty Ladies
Creative Friends
Crosskeys College – Coleg Gwent
Deerbolt Mental Health Reading and Art Therapy Group
Dowlais Quilters
Dowlais Visual Art Group
Duchess’s Community High School
Durham High School
Emmanuel Middle School
English Cabaret
Erskine Community Garden
Good Space
Guernsey Islands Federation of Women Institutes
Guernsey Ladies’ College
Henry Box School
Heyford Park Free School – Brooke Green
HMP Cardiff Art Class
HMP Frankland Art Group
HMP Kirkham Inside Art Group
HMP Long Lartin
Holywell School
Horndean Technology College (HTC) students
Hydebank Wood College
Irena Sendlers Polish School, Hull
Jersey Holocaust Memorial Day Committee
Jewish Care’s Holocaust Survivors’ Centre
Kelvinbridge Sew&Sews
King David Primary School, Manchester
Lathom Junior School
Leicester Progressive Jewish Congreation
Madstone LTD
Maurice Blik
Merthyr Central Library
Methodist College Belfast
Mill Green School
Northgate High School Ipswich – Year 9 Students
Oasis Coulsdon
Pennington Junior School
Perton Crafters, Wolverhampton
Projects4Change Youth Project
Queen Marys College Art Students
Simon Langton Girls’ Grammar – Year 13 Art Reps
South Shropshire Interfaith
St Andrew’s CE Primary School
St Edward’s School Poole
St George the Martyr
St Georges RC School
St James’s CE Primary School
St Nicholas parish
Sunderland Libraries Services
The Council of Christians and Jews
The Friendship Circle
The John Wallis Church of England Academy
The Open Centre, Derby
The Rabbit Hole Independent Book Shop Brigg
The Spires College
The Village Shul
Torquay Boys Grammar
Upholland Roby Mill Primary School
Voice of Salam
Wigan Local Authority
Wymott: Voices in Reflection
Yiewsley Baptist Church
Ysgol Maesydderwen