Art and memories (the Shoah through art)
November 4, 2024
On October 18, we had the pleasure of seeing an event that had been in preparation for several months come to life: “Art and memories (the Shoah through art)”, held at the Centre Maurice Ravel (Paris 12th).
Memory is volatile by nature. If we are not careful, memory fades away with the women and men who pass it on. Despite its weight, the memory of the Shoah is no exception to this truth. Our association’s mission is precisely to ensure not only that the memory of the Marcel network founded by Odette and Moussa Abadi is preserved, but also, more broadly, that the memory of the Shoah is kept alive. There are a thousand ways of anchoring memory. We tell stories, we paint, we draw, we sing, we write books and plays, we act… Art, in all its forms, is a vehicle for memory – for memories.
We are immensely fortunate to count artists among the Abadi children and friends: musicians, authors, composers, actors, illustrators… All of them carry in their art a trace of the history of the Shoah. Consciously or not, their expression is closely linked to what they know – and often, paradoxically, to what they do not know, to what they were not told, or were told very late.
We wanted to bring some of these artists together to share with the public their analysis of this connection between art and memories.
The event was held in Paris in the 12th arrondissement, where Odette and Moussa lived for so many years. We could have done nothing without the help and support of several people, first and foremost the Mayor of the 12th, Mrs Emmanuelle Pierre-Marie, her office, and in particular Mrs Fadila Taïeb, Deputy Mayor for Culture. Through them we were put in touch with Charlotte Jet, Culture and Events Coordinator at the Centre Maurice Ravel, and David Valligny, Director of the Théâtre Douze. They opened the doors of their theatre, and more broadly of the centre, to us with great kindness and commitment.
In the first part, the film “Le Réseau Marcel” by Jacqueline Sigaar and Maria Landau was shown. The audience followed the journeys of some of the children hidden by the Marcel network. Andrée, Marthoune, Jeannette… went back to Nice in search of their childhood – saved, but often forgotten, or at least incomplete. A rich exchange with the audience followed, about remembrance and the need to pass on history and preserve memory. Without a past, there is no future. Each testimony illustrates the importance of knowing, telling and remembering.
Natacha Karsenti then read a few passages from “Terre de détresse” by Odette Abadi. This book stands as a major testimony to the horror of the camps. In it, Odette recounts her time at Birkenau with terrifying accuracy. Some people are reluctant to read this kind of book for fear of being too affected by it. On this point, Marie Gatard, a long-standing friend of Odette, who also had that first reaction, responded very aptly: “What she lived through, I can at least read.”
In the second part, a round table was held, again on the theme “Art and memories”. It was chaired by Annette Wieviorka, a historian specialising in the Shoah and in the history of the Jews in the 20th century. Annette gave the floor to Victor Haïm, a hidden child (not by the Marcel network), friend of Moussa, playwright, screenwriter and actor, and to Sender Vizel, a comic-book artist whose work is marked by the memory of the Shoah and the fight against antisemitism. Under Annette’s incisive questioning, each told how his own story, entwined with the Shoah, could influence his art. The discussion with the audience that followed was just as rich.
After another emotional exchange with the audience, the evening came to an end. Everyone left – though not without lingering a little in the corridors of the centre, as a way of prolonging the moment and anchoring it a little more firmly in their memory.
Following on from this day, we invite you to join us around other arts: painting and sculpture. From June 13 to 26, 2025, an exhibition of paintings by Rywka Mesynger and many other international artists brought together by the gallerist Nathalie Orsini will be held at the Ministry of the Economy and Finance. The drawings and paintings of Rywka Mesynger (1919–1980) contribute in particular to the work of remembrance, so closely are their themes linked to the history of Europe during the Second World War. Her artistic vocation is an act of resistance, a pictorial testimony before the eyes of the free world, and she draws inspiration from women resisters such as Odette Abadi. We hope to see many of you there.
“… be watchmen, watchmen and awakeners. Talk to your children, talk to your grandchildren…”