This semester, in the Jewish Studies elective, Creative Responses to the Holocaust, we explored the themes and key ideas of the Holocaust and how they have been represented through art and poetry. As a creative person, this correlation between Jewish history and art was very engaging for me; it was interesting to see artistic techniques like colour symbolism, composition and shape used to convey such a gruesome and sensitive topic as the Holocaust. We studied art made after the Holocaust, though it was most confronting to see those that were made during the Holocaust. These still life artworks gave us a good visual idea about what it was really like in the ghettos and death camps. We then looked at poetry responding to the Holocaust. The poetry we analysed shared themes of sadness and remorse but also anger and lack of faith. This called for some interesting and controversial debates which forced us to really consider the emotional fallout of the Holocaust. We then had to create our own creative response to the Holocaust and being inspired by both the artistic and poetic approach, I decided to find a Holocaust poem and draw a visual interpretation of it. I was very interested in the idea of memorialisation through literature and found a poem, September Song by Geoffrey Hill, which specifically focused on commemorating a child’s life recorded in one of the death camps. In response to this, I illustrated a picture that represented Hill bringing the memory of the Holocaust victims back to life as he writes. I believe in the importance of remembering our history as Jews and those that were a part of it. Through Jewish Studies this semester I was able to learn of the Holocaust’s modern representation through art and poetry and then take my personal interest in memorialisation and create my own.

By Tamarah Aaron,Year 10

Click on the two images below to explore the Year 10 Final Creative Pieces

Curating the Holocaust 
Year 10 Visit to the Sydney Jewish Museum

The semester of Holocaust learning in Year 10 culminated in a tailor-made visit to the Sydney Jewish Museum. Our students found the experience meaningful and that it greatly enhanced their learning over the semester. Our thanks go to the wonderful Survivor, Yvonne Engelman, who shared her incredible journey and memories with us, as well as to Ilana McCorquodale and Rebecca Kummerfeld for organising the event, and the Museum Guides and Educators for their invaluable time with our students.

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