Masconomet Regional School District to Host Temporary Photography Exhibit “Evidence and Artifact: Documenting the Holocaust Through Images

BOXFORD – Superintendent Michael Harvey and Social Studies Department Head Eva Urban Hughes would like to share that Masconomet Regional School District is hosting a temporary photography exhibit titled “Evidence and Artifact: Documenting the Holocaust Through Images” by artist Richard Wiesel.  

MRSD, in collaboration with the Salem State Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, will be holding the exhibit at Masconomet Regional High School, 20 Endicott Rd., through the month of December and is open to students, staff and the community. 

The exhibit will display 10 objects that were recovered after the liberation of the women’s concentration camps in Germany, Ravensbrück and Sachsenhausen. The objects tell the various stories of the atrocity and horror of the camps, but also highlight the resilience and humanity of those who were imprisoned there. Each object is carefully contextualized, allowing the viewer to contemplate and reflect on the Holocaust, while building upon the historical perspective on the issues of genocide.  

Salem State will also be conducting workshops around the images for junior high school students who are studying World War II and the Holocaust, and for those taking World War II electives.  

The artist Richard Wiesel is from Australia and is a distant relative of Elie Wiesel, the renowned author of the memoir “Night,” which depicts his own experiences at concentration camps during the Holocaust. However, the two have never met.  

Richard Wiesel has an extensive background in marketing and the film industry, and has recently been exploring the use of images in storytelling. 

For more information about Wiesel and his work click here. 

This exhibit and experience are funded by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Genocide Grant, awarded to the Masconomet Social Studies Department last year.  

“I would like to thank Richard Wiesel for helping us put together this exhibit for our community to learn about and remember those affected by the Holocaust,” said Superintendent Harvey. “I would also like to thank Salem State for collaborating with us on this project, as well as DESE for grant funding which allowed us to host and open this exhibit. A special thank you to thank Eva Urban Hughes, for bringing the exhibit and the genocide education grant to Masconomet. This exhibit is a reminder of those who sacrificed so much and the determination of the men and women who were there.” 

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