Art of the Holocaust: The Works of Martin Kieselstein

Please visit the Museum of Family History's newest online exhibition, entitled "The Works of Martin Kieselstein."

Within this exhibition you will see more than two dozen of his sculptures, just a small sampling of his large body of work. Dr. Kieselstein has been a prodigious artist, creating hundreds of emotive works that represent the tragic events that befell the Jews of his hometown both before and during the Holocaust, e.g. life in the ghetto, the transports and Jewish existence within the concentration camps such as Auschwitz. To do this, Dr. Kieselstein has used a wide variety of materials, such as clay, bronze, wood, stone and glass.

His work has been exhibited in many locations, such as Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Beer-Sheva and Safed in Israel; Budapest, Hungary; Helsinki, Finland; Heidelberg, Dachau, Kronach and Worms in Germany; Nijkerk in Holland,Torremolinos in Spain, and Maryland in the U.S.A.

Here is the introduction to the Museum's exhibition of Dr. Kieselstein's works, in his own words:

My name is Dr. Martin Kieselstein. I was born in Romania in 1925, during the Second World War, the area belonging to Hungary.

In 1944 I was deported to Auschwitz, together with all the Jews of my hometown.

Of our family only my father and I survived. My mother and my sister died while doing forced labor. I still suffer due to the lack of knowledge whether they perished during the cold winter, hunger, or the beatings of the Nazis.

After my release I returned to my hometown, studied medicine, graduated in 1952 and worked there as a physician.

In 1959 I came to Israel and worked there as a geriatrician in Jerusalem, because I saw it as my duty to help elderly people, especially those who were Holocaust survivors. In recognition of my activities I was awarded the "Yakir Yerushalayim," ("Worthy Citizen of Jerusalem") award. I am married; we have two sons and five grandchildren.

I don't regard myself as an artist, but feel obliged and duty bound to convey to future generations the awareness of the horror of the Holocaust through creations made from various materials.

You can visit this exhibition using the following link: www.museumoffamilyhistory.com/ce/kieselstein/mk.htm.
Your comments are always welcome.