Commemoration in Auschwitz

Gerhard Richter BIRKENAU

In 1944, prisoners secretly photographed the killings in Auschwitz. Gerhard Richter used these photographs in his “Birkenau” series. The pictures will be on permanent display in an exhibition pavilion on the grounds of the International Youth Meeting Centre in Oświęcim.

Gerhard Richter's Birkenau paintings on display in a gallery. Two people observe the abstract art closely.

The four photographs, which were taken secretly and at the risk of their lives by Sonderkommando prisoners in 1944, are considered to be the only photographic documents of the Holocaust that document the murder and burning of the bodies of the Jewish population in Auschwitz. For the painter Gerhard Richter, they formed the starting point and basis for his 2014 work “Pictures from Birkenau” – impressed by these photographs, he decided many years ago to take up the subject again in four abstract, large-format paintings. There are editions of the originals, of which Gerhard Richter has made 2020 available to the International Auschwitz Committee as a permanent loan for an exhibition at the International Youth Meeting Centre.

Gerhard Richter is one of the best-known German artists. He works in the fields of painting, photography and sculpture. In his work, he often uses photographs as models for his paintings.

The Gerhard Richter BIRKENAU exhibition pavilion was designed by Gerhard Richter and Sabine Moritz-Richter. The concept was developed in collaboration with Christoph Heubner, the International Auschwitz Committee, the Foundation for the International Youth Meeting Centre in Oświęcim and the City of Oświęcim. The architectural design of Gerhard Richter’s building was supervised and realised by the architect Edwin Heinz – GMS Architekten PartGmbB, Isny / Allgäu and the architectural firm Susuł & Strama Architekci, Oświęcim. The construction of the Gerhard Richter BIRKENAU pavilion was made possible by a donation from Volkswagen AG.

Since the opening, there has also been criticism of the exhibition’s design and concept. In an exhibition in Cologne, the artist Leo Kahane addresses the question of who does or does not receive publicity with his historical and artistic perspectives and why the perspectives of Jews and Roma receive less attention and access. He also criticizes the photographs painted over by Richter, which were secretly taken by concentration camp prisoners in Auschwitz at the risk of their lives, in the Jewish tradition of the commandment not to make an image of oneself. In a zeichen article (01/2025), former ASF volunteer Hannah Schmidt writes about these issues after visiting the exhibition.

The permanent exhibition can be visited from Monday to Friday from 9.00 am to 4.00 pm. It is also possible to make an individual appointment outside regular visiting hours.