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The exhibition Memory Photographs, by former Auschwitz prisoner Marian Kołodziej at the St. Maximilian Kolbe Center in Harmęże, is some of the most moving testimony to the reality of the camp. In Oś you will find an interview with this outstanding painter and stage designer, and our cover features one of his works, a self-portrait of a man who says, “through the line I draw, I remember the thousands of people who died there. This is a form of honoring their memory.” DOWNLOAD PDF FILE...

The fourth edition of the Summer School on Teaching about the Holocaust has finished. The project is addressed to teachers, students, trainers and leaders of non-governmental organizations that deal with the subject of the Holocaust from all over Poland. The goal is to widen knowledge about how to teach about the Holocaust through an enriching educational workshop and make contact with other teachers easier.

Because of the large numbers of visitors to the Auschwitz Memorial, entry to the Auschwitz I site will be exclusively on a guided, group basis from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. during the period from August 3 to September 30, 2009. For individuals, we are offering a special opportunity to join others in “tours” of the Memorial during these hours. There will be no change to the way organized groups visit the Museum. These changes do not apply to the Auschwitz II-Birkenau site.

A European Union summit of delegations from 46 counties, including non-members, has been held in Prague as part of the Czech presidency. The conference was devoted to the problem of property plundered during the Holocaust and World War II. The final declaration, as approved, took particular note of the integrity and authenticity of Memorials. The Polish delegation included the director of the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, Dr. Piotr M. A. Cywiński.

The educational program for prisoners incarcerated in Małopolska correctional institutions is gathering pace. The aim of establishing the joint program with Auschwitz museum and the regional prison service is to develop appropriate moral and social attitudes through education of what Auschwitz was. It is the hope of the project’s authors that the project will be helpful in rehabilitation of inmates.

The 14-member Council of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation convened for the first time at the Chancellery of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers in Warsaw on June 17.