On this page are examples of a remarkable art project bringing together older Jewish people, the Imperial War Museum North and The Morris Feinmann home in Didsbury will commemorate the holocaust in miniature poems displayed at Piccadilly Station.

On Holocaust Memorial Day 2009, poetic texts created by the older people, will be displayed in lights on the electronic billboard at Piccadilly Station, Manchester. The holocaust has often been linked to trains and this new piece will hint at the past, while celebrating people’s lives today. 

Artist Lois Blackburn and writer Philip Davenport have been working with older Jewish people living at The Morris Feinmann Home, exploring issues in regard to the holocaust. John Collins from Imperial War Museum-North has been part of the team, bringing objects from the museum collection to discuss and prompt memories.

“This work will investigate family histories, experiences of displacement, refugee backgrounds and direct holocaust memories. But most of all we are collecting statements from people about the joys and sadnesses that they have in living now,” says Davenport. “We are interested in the bric-a-brac of people’s lives, the tiny moments, rather than the grand history. Many of the pieces are humorous and gentle. We called the project Kindness because some of these people experienced a terrible lack of kindness. And because they were persecuted for being a certain ‘kind’ of cultural group. ”

Lois Blackburn added: “It’s inspiring to meet the wonderful people at Morris Feinmann and we are delighted about our collaboration with the Imperial War Museum too. This is important work, but it touches very deep memories and we will tread delicately. One of the women we worked with used the phrase ‘Bring light towards you’ in a poem and that little phrase seems to sum up our philosophy for this project – whether it is the light of realisation, of finding hope, or simply of clear recollection.”