The horror of Auschwitz in the eyes of Czesława Kwoka, one of the many teenagers deported and then killed in the concentration camp. 75 years after her death, her face is colored by a Brazilian artist.
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him
The horror of Auschwitz in the eyes of Czesław Kwok, one of the many teenagers deported and then killed in the concentration camp. 75 years after her death, her face is “colored” by a Brazilian artist.
She was 14 and only that black and white photo of her remains, probably taken after a beating by the guard. Like the other deportees, Czesława Kwoka also had a tattooed number and had been shaved. The artist Marina Amaral wanted to pay homage to her by coloring her face and restoring her dignity.
On March 12, 1943, Czesława, known only by number 26947, was killed with a phenol injection into her heart, her only fault being born on August 15, 1928 in Wólka Zlojecka, a village in the Zamosc region, Polish land of Nazi destination.
In this image, the girl is portrayed in profile, with a swollen face and very short hair, in her eyes all the criminal tragedy of Nazism. According to the testimony of one survivor, William Brasse, who physically took her mugshots, a few moments earlier the little girl had been beaten by the guards and in the images you can see her lip cut by the beatings.
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Il Auschwitz Museum posted on his Twitter profile the signage images of the teenager colored by Amaral that went straight to the hearts of the users.
12 March 1943 | 14-year old Polish girl Czesława Kwoka (camp no. 26947) was murdered in #Auschwitz with a phenol injection into the heart. She was deported by Germans from Zamość region as part of their plan of creating „living space” in the east. [a thread – 1/4] pic.twitter.com/evdX9MpoL9
— Auschwitz Memorial (@AuschwitzMuseum) March 12, 2018
“I believe in the strength that comes from seeing faces like Czesława's in color. It is much easier to identify when you perceive them as real human beings. This may seem paradoxical, but this step is necessary to truly understand and feel more intimately involved ”, explains the artist.
11,000,000 people were killed in the Holocaust. It did not begin with killing, it began with the rhetoric of hate. #HolocaustMemorialDay pic.twitter.com/gK3KTiSqIY
- Marina Amaral (@ marinamaral2) January 27, 2017
And goes on:
“Look at Czesława's eyes. Thanks to the colorized version of the image, the red triangle that was the brand with which the political prisoners were identified is clearly visible on the girl's outfit. Czesława remained in Auschwitz only three months before being killed, one month after her mother who met the same fate ”.
Dominella Trunfio
