Fall 2007 Exhibit

Artist’s Statement: Patrica Brintle

Where Greatness is Hidden
18” x 80” Acrylic on wooden door

Finished Star of David
unfinished lives
zachor, zachor
remember, remember
Janet R. Kirchheimer

When Mr. Irving Roth gathered the artists for this new project, I was excited. When he revealed the theme, I was at a loss. How can I select one rescuer over another and where do I start? How about the rescuers who have not yet come to light? How about the emotional rescues? My task was difficult and challenging. Although I found solace in the fact that Raoul Wallenberg saved over 30,000 Jews with his Schutzpass and that Carl Lutz saved 62,000 Hungarian Jews by using a ruse and his diplomatic position, my heart was touched by the likes of Gertruda Babilinska who waved only one little boy. I continued my research and the further I probed the more I felt lost. There are so many good souls to choose from; after all Yad Vashem, in Jerusalem, has already honored over 21,000 rescuers and there are still many cases pending.

I thought that if I found the comment thread among the rescuers, I would find my painting, but the more I searched for similarities, the more differences I found. Man as well as women participated in the rescues. I learned that some were teenagers while others were well into their eighties. Some were very poor while others incredibly rich. Some were very religious while others were atheists. Their occupations ranged from students, housewives and farmers to clergymen, doctors and diplomats just to name a few. Rescuers were mostly Europeans but rescues were reported outside the continent as well. Some acted ingle-handedly while other collectively and in the case of Denmark and Bulgaria, entire countries acted in the rescue effort.

The only similarity I found was their compassion and the terrible danger they faced in risking their own life, that of their families, and often that of the village, in order to save the life of another. Sometimes, as Johan Benders, they died for the cause. They chose to live in constant fear and deceit to protect those they were shielding. They felt that one person could make a difference and whether their action was driven by a sense of morality, integrity, virtue, or by politics, it did not change the horrendous and dreadful consequences they faced. By taking action, they were safeguarding the future of the race and opening the door for the next generation.

detail I could not choose one so I selected some who, directly or indirectly, were instrumental in saving children. The support is a wooden door to represent the gate to the future. The painting shows the assembly of rescuers. They wear robes to mark their holiness. They hold to safety the Jewish people, the ones they rescued, represented by the child on their shoulder who in turn holds up yellow star. Look closer at the ones on the front line and their individual identities will review themselves. Not only as their names inscribed on the hem of their robes, but they hold items that are particular to them: Miep Gies holds the diary of Anne Frank she saved, allowing Anne to live in the memory of all who read about her; Father Benoit holds a stack of baptismal certificates; Marion Pritchard holds the revolver she used to kill the Nazi guard who would have discovered the ones she was hiding; Jozef Kirchheimer and Paul Lardinois relax on the floor in eternal friendship reading postcards they exchanged. Finally, if you look at the painting from far away, you will see that the Star of David shines right through them all.

By saving one person the rescuers raised the world’s awareness for all generations. Their vigilance, courage, fortitude and compassion saved a people and preserved Jewish identity forever. They raised the Star of David, the Magen David, and kept it shining brighter. Thanks to them, the star, which had been used by the Nazis as a symbol of disgrace, shame, humiliation and death, is now and ever shall be an emblem of dignity, honor and respect.

Zachor! Zachor! Remember! Remember!

Alphabetical List of the 50 Persons Standing On the Front Line (Note that there are many more behind them)
Andelwahhab	Kahled	Arab landowner who rescued 23 Jews sheltered in his olive oil factory in a small town in Tunisia
Andre	Joseph	Belgian abbot who hid over 200 in monasteries and private homes
Babilinska	Gertruda	Nurse to Michael Stolowcki who adopted the boy after his parents were killed
Benoit	Pierre-Marie	Capuchin monk from Marseille who forged baptismal certificates
Bogaard	Johannes	Hid over 300 on his farm in Nieuw Wennep, Haarlemmermeer in the Netherlands
Bol	Elizabeth	Fifteen year old girl who brought food coupons and hid people in her house
Danielson	Carl Ivan	Swedish ambassador in Budapest who rescued over 10,000 Hungarian Jews
De Jesus	Father Jacques	Carmelite friar and headmaster who hid children at the Petit Colege de l’Enfant Jesus in Avon, France
Dedek	Frania	Former domestic who saved orphaned Benjamin Blitzer and Eliezer Art and moved to Israel with them
Deffaugt	Jean	Mayor of Annemasse, France, who saved more than 200 children imprisoned in the Pax Hotel
Donadille	Marc	Protestant minister member of CIMADE who saved over 80 children in Le Chambon sur Lignon
Fry	Varian	Known as the American Schindler, he helped save thousands of refugees including many prominent artists
Gies	Miep	Employee of Otto Frank who hid the family in Amsterdam and preserved Anne Frank’s diary
Gineste	Marie-Rose	Worked with Bishops Saliefe of Toulouse and Theas of Montauban to hid children in monasteries
Grobis	Fr. Antanas	Lituanian priest who saved a 12 year old girl
Heiber	Esta	Jewish member of Belgian underground; she saved many children and brought food stamps to those hiding
Herscovici	Andree Guele	A teacher who got deeply involved when her children started disappearing from class
Kalina	Antonin	Communist political prisoner who protected over 12,000 children while in Buchenwald
Kirchheimer	Jozef	Eleven year old boy whose emotions were rescued by post cards exchanged with his friend Paul Lardinois
Koblas	Nikolsi	Farmer from Moldova who waved a little girl by passing her as his cousin
Korczak	Jarusz	Pediatrician who saved many children; board the train in Treblinka with his orphanage on August 6, 1942
Kowalchik	Mrs.	Farmer who saved a little girl by passing her as her own
Kurochka	Nikifor	He and his wife, Tatiana Minkovskaya, saved a baby boy and raise dhim
Lardinois	Paul	Friend of Jozef Kirchheimer who kept him happy until his death in Auschwitz on November 5, 1942
Lutz	Carl	Swiss vice consul who saved 62,000 with a play on the word “unit” to mean “family,” not “person”
Luzin	Heralda	Baker who shelter children in her cellar
Morozova	Yevgenia	Pianist who saved two sisters, Sofia and Galina Levina, 10 and 15 years old, by passing them as her cousins
Neilsen	Ellen	Fishmonger who helped dozen of children escape by boat from Denmark to Sweden
Peshev	Dimatar	Deputy Prime Minister who stopped the deportation of over 48,000 to Bulgaria
Pinkhof	Mirjam	Teacher and member of the Youth Aliya movement who helped keep children from being deported to Westerbork
Poinier-Prous	Cathie	French teacher who rescued 236 children from the Route de Limoges concentration camp
Pritchard	Marion	Shot a Nazi guard to save those she was hiding
Przewlocka	Elizabeth	Snatched a Jewish child to safety while the Nazi guard wasn’t looking
Roneali	Angelo	Used Vatican intervention and baptism certificates to save many children; later became Pope John XXIII
Ropelewski	Hipolit	With his wife, Wiktoria and son, Robert, they saved the baby daughter of the Cheskelberg family
Rotia	Angelo	Vitcan representative who saved over 15,000 by issuing safe conduct certificates as well false baptismal certificates
Saliege	Fr.	Archbishop of Toulouse who facilitated the work of Marie Rose Gineste to hide children in monasteries
Sanz-Briz	Angel	Spanish ambassador who provided 700 protective passes
Schindler	Oskar	Businessman who saved over 1,300 children and saved adults by hiring them to work in his enamel factory
Schouten	Family	Farmers in the Netherlands who saved the little girl Lore Baer
Sendler	Irena	Head of Zegota and Jolanda who saved 2,500 children
Sugihara	Chiune	Japanese ambassdor who, with his wife Yukiko, disobeyed his government to save the children
Taquet	Emile	With his wife Marie, the couple hid 75 children in Jamoigne sur Semois
Theas	Fr.	Archbishop of Montauban who facilitated the work of Marie Rose Gineste to hide children in monasteries
Trocme	Daniel	Teacher and cousin of Pastor Andre who saved over 5,000, but was finally deported and died with his children
Trocme	Andre	Pastor in Le Chambon sur Lignon who, with his wife Magda, saved over 5,000 children
Van de Kar	Siegfried	Had a suitcase of clothing bearing the yellow star which belonged to those he was protecting
Wallenberg	Raoel	Swedish diplomat who used the “Schutz-Passe” to save over 30,000 Jews
Winton	Nicholas	British stockbroker who organized the kindertransport to save over 10,000 children
Zwonarz	Jozef	The “Awakening Angel” who saved Dr. Waliach’s family including their three year old daughter

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