Kislak Center at the University of Miami
May 17 - July 21, 2023
The Holocaust was one of the darkest chapters in human history that claimed the lives of six million Jews and countless others. In the face of this unimaginable horror, there are those who survived and rebuilt their lives. This exhibition presents portraits of South Florida Holocaust survivors alongside their memoirs.
Photographer Laszlo Selly, a Holocaust survivor himself, captured the visages of fellow survivors as seen through his unique lens of solidarity and understanding. Each of Selly’s portraits is accompanied by a short account of the survivor’s personal and inspiring story written by Bobbi Kaufman. Also on display are 15 of Kaufman’s memoirs—many published for the first time and others republished as a new edition by the Sue and Leonard Miller Center for Contemporary Judaic Studies at the University of Miami. The portraits and memories have been made accessible for all to learn about the Holocaust from the survivors' perspective.
This exhibition has been curated by Kineret Ben-Knaan, director of Technical Services and Judaic Studies Librarian, and Arthur Dunkelman, curator of the Jay I. Kislak Collection.
The lyrics represent a strong testament to faith and resilience in the face of persecution and death. According to the accounts of survivors, many Jews sang "Ani Ma'amin" (אני מאמין) while walking to their deaths in the gas chambers. After the war, the song came to hold a special symbolic meaning in relation to the Holocaust and was used in some of the first Holocaust memorial ceremonies and programs. Alfred Camner, University of Miami’s Board of Trustees, recently donated this version of “Ani Ma’amin” to the Marta and Austin Weeks Music Library and Technology Center.