The Canal Art Centre will be the first stop for an exhibition on the Auschwitz concentration camp. The exhibition includes personal belongings from people who were kept prisoners (and most probably exterminated) there.
The exhibit, produced by Musealia, best known for their staging of the Titanic or Human Bodies exhibitions will be shown in museums around the world for seven years.
Focusing on the largest and most fatal concentration and extermination camp of Nazi Germany in occupied Polish territory during the Second World War, under the supervision of the SS officer, Heinrich Himmler, this exhibition will have a historic background, offering a reflection on one of the most dramatic events of the past century, and it has the support of the Auschwitz State Museum, located 43 kilometres from the city of Krakow, which has authorised the loan of personal belongings and objects, as well as the collaboration of over 20 institutions, museums and private collectors from different nations..
Visitors will have the opportunity to observe over 600 original objects from Auschwitz for the first time ever, such as the striped pyjamas worn by the prisoners and personal belongings, such as glasses or suitcases, which were taken from deportees on their arrival at the camp. All of these objects have been subjected to a long and delicate restoration process prior to being displayed to the public.
Welcoming 1.5 million visitors every year, Auschwitz is the most visited concentration camp. It was added to the World Heritage List as a symbol of the Holocaust. In fact, it was a network of German Nazi concentration camps in occupied Poland whose construction was commissioned by Heinrich Himmler, head of the SS.
After exceeding 450,000 visitors since its opening and becoming one of the most visited exhibitions of the year, the exhibition will be extended until 3 February 2019, hence extending the quota of free visits for educational centres and incorporating new objects from Ana Frank’s House in Amsterdam. It will be the first time that these objects, which belonged to the little girl during her time hiding from the Nazis alongside her family, are on display outside Holland.
The recommended duration of the visit is between 2 and 3 hours, so we advise the visitors to plan their visit accordingly to be able to see the whole exhibition.