We invite you to the first curator-led tour in 2025 with Dr. Jakub Bendkowski of the temporary exhibition 'Capturing the Ghetto. The Everyday Life of the Łódź Ghetto Through the Eyes of Artists'!

What distinguished the Łódź ghetto from other ghettos in occupied Poland? What was the everyday life of the residents of the ghetto like? What were the wartime fates of the artists residing in Łódź? What challenges did they face to survive and continue creating? And how is it possible that so many testimonies from that time have survived, which we can now present at the exhibition 'Capturing the Ghetto. The Everyday Life of the Łódź Ghetto Through the Eyes of Artists'?

Dr. Jakub Bendkowski, the curator of this exhibition, will answer these and other questions during the tour. We invite you to look at Łódź through the eyes of its former residents and listen to stories about their experiences.

Participation in the tour is free of charge.

The event will take place on Sunday, January 12, 2025, at 11:00 AM.

We are collecting registrations until January 10 at 4:00 PM at the address: rezerwacja@jhi.pl, please include in the subject: 'Tour 12.01'.

The exhibition Capturing the Ghetto. The Everyday Life of the Łódź Ghetto Through the Eyes of Artists accompanies the eightieth anniversary of the liquidation of the ghetto in occupied Łódź. The exhibition presents various aspects of the extremely difficult functioning of Jews in the 'closed district' established by the Germans. The everyday life of the ghetto is depicted through the collections of the Jewish Historical Institute: original paintings and drawings created in the ghetto – primarily by Józef Kowner, Izrael Lejzerowicz, and Icchok Braun – as well as various objects created in the ghetto using different techniques.

The exhibits displayed at the exhibition bring closer the everyday life of the ghetto and the circumstances in which they were created. Works that artists created from an inner need to document the realities faced by thousands of Jews hold particular significance. They are an expression of resistance to the extreme situation in which their creators found themselves, an attempt to save life and preserve humanity.

More information about the exhibition: https://www.jhi.pl/wystawy/uchwycic-getto,535

Accompanying events program: https://www.jhi.pl/artykuly/uchwycic-getto-wydarzenia,7892

Catalog: https://ksiegarnianatlomackiem.pl/uchwycic-getto-codziennosc-getta-lodzkiego-oczami,3,3382,5239

Dr. Jakub Bendkowski – a graduate of the Institute of Art History at the University of Warsaw; he defended his doctoral thesis at the Institute of Art of the Polish Academy of Sciences. A participant in medieval seminars led by Prof. Piotr Skubiszewski. A scholar of 'The Clifford and Mary Corbridge Trust' in Cambridge. His research interests focus on medieval tomb sculpture, issues of memory and commemoration. He also deals with Jewish artists of the 19th and 20th centuries. He is the author of a monograph dedicated to Simon Trachter. For many years, he worked in the Art Department of the Jewish Historical Institute in Warsaw (as a curator and custodian). He currently works at the Center for Art of the Royal Castle in Warsaw.