Drawing Against Oblivion

On the occasion of 27 January, an exhibition of Manfred Bockelmann's drawings was opened in the French Pavilion in Zagreb, where it will remain until 10 February.

The portraits were presented in a large format using a charcoal technique, based on the photographs taken by the Gestapo, the SS and hospital administrations, or on those found in the albums of Jewish families brought to the concentration camps, mostly Auschwitz. The exhibition is organized by the Festival of Tolerance in Zagreb, in cooperation with the Austrian Cultural Forum and the Student Center in Zagreb, and with financial support of the Town of Zagreb and European Funds.

The author dedicated the whole project to young people who, in his own words, should be better than those of former generations. Accordingly, the presentation of this exhibition in Zagreb is followed by visits and a workshop organized for school children. These programs are organized by Festival of Tolerance, with special engagement of its President and Auschwitz survivor, Branko Lustig, who was also interned as a child, and Documenta from Zagreb, the organization involved in the preparation of the workshop entitled Children in the Independent State of Croatia.  The workshop was organized for a group of children from Glina, a town from a territory which under special state care, and which was exposed to war operations during the Second World War but also in the war from 1990s.

Image gallery: Drawing Against Oblivion, Zagreb

Click on one of the images to view the gallery (5 images).