POSSESSION, 2020
Exploring the idea of who lives in the homes of those people who were murdered in the Holocaust. Who is living side by side with their possessions?
“Once the miniature world is self-enclosed, as in the case of the dollhouse, we can only stand outside, looking in, experiencing a type of tragic distance.” On Longing, Susan Steward, 1993
I’ve lived in Germany for about fifteen years now. So far, I have only once heard a German say that her relative had done horrible things during the war. That they still have stolen objects from Jewish families in their homes (and she did not think that wrong). Academic and teacher
“I was shocked when my student told me about the Brockenhaus Encyclopedia in her home being of Jewish origin. She knows it was not given up freely by the former Jewish owners.” Academic & teacher
COMMENTS
A chilling thought - as chilling as the stories of Jews returning to their former homes only to be attacked and in some cases killed by the people who had taken possession of those homes
I like how the items are now seen in a likely setting, and I still see them as ghosts of their former lives
Like little ghosts
You are creating work that is both personal and universal
You touch hearts in a wonderfully unique way.
Thank you for the hours you’ve spent and for giving of yourself to make this, and for honouring and highlighting each of these precious lost lives
This work conveys the aching absence of lost lives powerfully
Wonderful and so moving
Heartbreaking as always, and wonderful
So subtle and so powerful
Measurement: 123cm x 82cm x 31cm
Process: Mould making, moulding
Materials: Antique cabinet, dolls house furniture, resin