The Holocaust and Human Rights Center is thrilled to house a new exhibit, Reflections on Genocide. The exhibit derives from a collaboration between Casco Bay High School and the University of Southern Maine in which students express their reflections and feelings on the university course, “Art and Genocide: A Case Study of the Holocaust” through study, conversation, and art as activism.
The artwork encompasses memorials to relatives designed to put a face on this genocide and attacks against members of any community. The pieces serve as an historical reminder so we may never forget. At times, they convey a sense of loss, an awareness of what disappears when we, as a collective, are at our worst. At other times, the works express how audacious hope is—as seen through abstract art that makes concrete the intangible. The students’ work poignantly evokes the horror in every act of genocide and, equally powerfully, the forces that fight against the hatred with love.
See all of the artwork and student explanations of their creative process here. We are welcoming visitors to the Michael Klahr Center to experience this exhibit, as well as the permanent installations, and to enjoy some time in this light-filled, hopeful space.
The students’ work poignantly evokes the horror in every act of genocide and, equally powerfully, the forces that fight against the hatred with love.