An art exhibition inspired by Holocaust literature will be on display at the D-Day Story museum in Portsmouth to mark Holocaust Memorial Day on Friday 27 January.
The artwork was created by students from the University of Portsmouth and Mayville High School.
The exhibition, which is open from 1pm to 3pm, forms part of a bigger memorial event to commemorate the Holocaust and those who died in the genocides which followed in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, and Darfur.
Dr Christine Berberich, Reader in Literature, alongside a pupil from the school, will introduce the exhibition and discuss the process of enabling students to uncover the story of the Holocaust for themselves.
It’s so important that people are educated about the Holocaust because we’re at risk of younger generations growing up knowing nothing about the systematic genocide of at least six million Jewish people.
Dr Berberich said: “Every year I run a final-year module on Holocaust literatures and for the first assessment my students have to produce a creative artefact that comes out of a group work presentation.
“I also work closely with Mayville High School in Southsea leading an annual session on Holocaust commemoration as part of their history lessons. The pupils do some creative work that reflects what they’ve learnt in those lessons and that’s also exhibited.
“It’s so important that people are educated about the Holocaust because we’re at risk of younger generations growing up knowing nothing about the systematic genocide of at least six million Jewish people.”
The museum is offering a programme of activities, including a talk by El Sadiq ‘Debay’ Mahmoud Manees who discusses his experience of warfare and genocide in Darfur.
El Sadiq was just 13 years old when civil war erupted between the Arab militia, backed by government forces, and Darfur’s mainly black African population. After his family home was attacked and razed to the ground, he fled to Chad where he spent many years in refugee camps before finally finding safety in the UK in 2015.
Entry to the museum is free on Holocaust Memorial Day, but tickets to the talk must be booked in advance.