Images of 75 Holocaust Survivors Mark the 75th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz

“Survivors: Faces of Life After the Holocaust” by renown portrait photographer Martin Schoeller is on view at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York through June 2023. The exhibit, a compelling and evocative installation of large images in a hexagonal configuration, presents a powerful message of shared human experience.

 

The exhibit, organized by Schoeller and Yad Vashem, capitalizes on the impact of Schoeller’s distinctive style of portraiture, characterized by extreme close-ups to the exclusion of all external markers — no visible background, no makeup, no posed expressions. The viewer considers an unadorned individual, each image exposing the trauma of a life, etched in demeanor and facial expression. The power of the 75 survivors is a haunting legacy.

 

Photos: Museum of Jewish Heritage

Text: Saul Rosenstreich and Judith K. Weiner