On January 17, 2025, The Remembrance Museum of the Land of Oświęcim Residents hosted a unique event – the opening of the exhibition titled “In times of war, the law falls silent”, organized in cooperation with the Libiąż Cultural Center. The event commemorated the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp, contributing to the reflection on the tragic history of this place and its influence on contemporary generations.
The event was attended by distinguished guests, including Ms. Ewelina Langer, director of the Libiąż Cultural Centre – co-organiser of the exhibition, as well as youth from the Julian Fałat State High School of Fine Arts in Bielsko-Biała with their teacher Ryszard Kwak and students of The District Complex of General Education, Sports and Technical Schools No. 2 in Oświęcim, accompanied by teacher Katarzyna Strycharska.
The exhibition consists of 17 works selected from among 280 works that are part of the “Oświęcim collection” belonging to the Libiąż Cultural Center. The art-works created after World War II by artists from Poland and abroad, show the traumatic experiences of the Auschwitz camp and their impact on subsequent generations. Authors of the presented works included: Łucja Jóźwiak, Antoni Szoska, Stanisław Górecki, as well as foreign artists such as Franz Schulte-Kreuzer (Germany) and Juan Rosa Agosta (Argentina).
The title of the exhibition, taken from the tapestry “Silent Leges Inter Arma” by Łucja Jóźwiak, recalls Cicero’s words, still relevant in the context of war and human rights violations. The exhibition is an attempt to show how artists of various environments, from 1957 to 2003, interpreted in their works the enormous emotional and historical charge associated with the existence of the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp. The curators of the exhibition, Martyna Paluchiewicz-Łabaj, Joanna Cebulska and Anna Cieplińska-Jaglarz, took care of the diversity of means of expression – from painting and sculpture to textile art.
The vernissage was accompanied by art workshops for students, which preceded the opening of the exhibition. During the workshop, youth from the Julian Fałat State High School of Fine Arts in Bielsko-Biała learned about the events surrounding the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau and delved into the theme of expressing and commemorating camp history through art. Participants were tasked with creating works inspired by this challenging subject. The central theme of the workshops was “liberation,” understood in a broad sense. The results of their efforts will soon be presented as a temporary exhibition at the museum. A virtual exhibition is also planned on the museum’s educational portal.
This exhibition “In times of war, the law falls silent” and the accompanying workshops provide a unique educational experience that inspires deeper reflection on history and its contemporary meaning. The display is open to museum visitors, encouraging contemplation of the tragic past and its impact on our present and future.
