The Holocaust Centre North's artist residency programme, Memorial Gestures, returns for a second year

How does the past inform our actions in the present? And how has the Holocaust shaped our understanding of genocide, ethnic persecution and human rights? These are questions posed by the Holocaust Centre North (HCN) to artists applying for their Memorial Gestures programme. Launched last year, this annual residency provides three successful artists the funds to create a piece of work based on research into the HCN archive and survivor community, after which the pieces will be displayed in an exhibition at the museum.

Located at the University of Huddersfield Queensgate Campus, HCN tells the story of Jewish survivors of the Holocaust who rebuilt their lives in the north of England. Memorial Gestures is supported by the Iby Knill Bursary, named for an extraordinary woman who endured much persecution throughout World War II. Knill’s family were forced out of their home and business in Czechoslovakia, she was arrested for assisting the Hungarian Resistance and interned at Auschwitz-Birkenau, but she survived it all. After the war Knill married a British soldier and spent the remainder of her life in Leeds, devoting her later life to Holocaust education.

Last year's Memorial Gestures winners were Jordan Baseman, April Lin 林森 and Laura Fisher, who presented works in textiles (Fisher's Red Cross Blankets) and visuals (The Gaps Between the Unforgettable by Lin and Baseman's These Were Not Simple Deaths). They had eight months and £4,800 each to undertake research using the museum archive and create something in response to its stories and themes that have a contemporary relevance. Winners of the 2024 residencies will receive the same backing and guidelines.

To find out more and to apply, visit the HCN website or attend one one fo their drop-in sessions on Monday 7 or Tuesday 29 August.

By Danielle Goldstein

Photos courtesy of Laura Fisher and Holocaust Centre North

Applications for Memorial Gestures II close on Monday 4 September. hcn.org.uk